


His Name is Daryl

by HigherMagic



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alpha Rick Grimes, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - No Zombie Apocalypse, Animal Instincts, Body Modification, Bottom Daryl Dixon, Breeding, Breeding Kink, Cannibalism, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Childbirth, Feral Behavior, Hand Jobs, Knotting, M/M, Memory Alteration, Memory Loss, Mildly Dubious Consent, Mpreg, Murder, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Daryl Dixon, Past Lori Grimes/Rick Grimes, Pregnancy Kink, References to Knotting, Rickyl Writers' Group, Self-Harm, Self-Lubrication, Sexual Roleplay, Stabbing, Time Skips, Top Rick Grimes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-21
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-10-22 00:14:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 53,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10685814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HigherMagic/pseuds/HigherMagic
Summary: It's been years since the Wars, and the world only has Alphas and women now. It's for the best - Omegas are vicious, predatory, and downright dangerous. Since their slaughter in the battles that had ravaged most of the world, natural-born Omegas are unheard of, and those that do still exist are carefully monitored and little more than drones. One thing is for certain: Omegas are extinct, and no longer a threat. Everyone knows that.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Somehow me marathoning Resident Evil and Catch Me If You Can ended up with....this? I can't honestly say. But! It'll be a fun little side project on top of everything else I'm writing :) Enjoy!
> 
> Story is mature for violence right now but will be explicit for other reasons soon.

 

The concrete is cold beneath his hands. There's glass and dust clouds rising up around him. He lets out a shriek, punching the ground as hard as he can. The concrete ripples under the blow, the hole his hand made spreading out until the entire alleyway is shattered. The glass on the bottom windows would break again if he hadn't already broken it all, littering down in tinkling waves to fall across his back and shoulders.

He screams again, raising his bruised knuckles to his hair and holding his head tightly as a harsh shudder runs down his spine. He's burning up from the inside, more animal shrieks clawing at his throat. He opens his mouth and blood drips out, staining the ground.

He curls up around his knees, shuddering again, before his head snaps up when he hears a sound. It's a stray cat and his eyes narrow, seeing the red and orange of the animal's life as it skitters in front of him. The cat meows, approaching him slowly, and starts to purr, tail flicking.

He rubs his head against it, feeling a little calmer, and then the animal runs away. He pushes himself to his feet unsteadily, catching himself on a broken windowsill. The inside is dark, it's the middle of the night and whoever owns this building has gone home. There's meat inside, frigid, and his stomach rumbles.

He climbs in, grabbing the first thing he sees. It's a steak, deliciously marbled, and he tears into it with a hunger he doesn't ever remember feeling before. It gives easily beneath his sharp teeth, red blood and juice dripping down his chin.

He lets out a low snarl, finishing the steak and grabbing another, and then another, until he finally starts to feel full. His head has started to throb again, pressure building up behind his eyes. He feels wayward, unsure. A flash hits him, a vision of a man standing over him while he sleeps, curled up in blankets and clothes that smell of comfort and home.

He closes his eyes and growls again, falling to his knees, his bloody hands going back to hold his head. It _hurts_. Everything in him hurts, like he's been joined to something all his life and someone has abruptly yanked it away, and his skin is peeling and he feels the shift coming on.

His knees can't hold him up – he falls onto his side and lets out another howl of pain, his fingernails elongating to sharp claws. He rakes them down his flesh, tearing it apart as the skin gives. His clothes fall in tatters around him and he shrieks again, punching the meat display so that the glass shatters.

He opens his eyes, irises glowing brightly and blue. The burning has started to recede and he crawls back onto his hands and knees, whimpering softly in the darkness. His teeth ache, sharp in his mouth and long like those of a cat. His hands, when they touch his chest to feel his hammering heart, land on something smooth and metallic.

He looks down at himself – there's a plate of iron on his shoulder, sewn into his skin. It stretches down, bloody and bright, and arcs across his heart and into his stomach. He had clawed the flesh away to reveal it. There's another plate on his opposite hip, he can feel the metal piercing his bone and melding with it.

Another flash strikes the backs of his eyes. That same man, his voice comforting and soft, soothing him through the pain when his shaking wouldn't stop and his moans would escalate to loud howls. He remembers calming under this man's touch. His eyes shone in harsh light. His touch is warm and gentle. He _misses_ this man but doesn't know who he _is_.

He shoves himself to his feet, growling when his knees give and he stumbles, catching himself against the windowsill. His hands curl into the wooden frame, ripping it apart and getting splinters under his claws and embedded in his palms.

He crawls out of the butcher shop and slinks down the alleyway, his bare feet making no sound as he skates around the garbage and glass on the ground. He snarls and crouches low when bright lights pass by the front of the alley with a rumbling that sounds like a threat.

He curls up underneath a dumpster, warm despite the frigid air, and closes his eyes.

 

 

 

 

Pain wakes him up, flaring hotly down his chest and legs. He rolls onto his back and hisses. His nails are back to normal, blunt and yellowy. He tries to claw at his chest but he can't – the skin has melted back and healed itself over the metal on his shoulder and his hip. He wants it _off_ , it itches and burns, but his nails can't bite that hard. He lifts his arm to bite at his wrist but his teeth are smooth and do nothing.

He shrieks again. There are people in the alleyway, looking at the destruction he caused. They're alerted by the sound. He growls and shrinks back.

"What was that?"

"Dunno. Sounded like an animal."

"Is anyone there?"

He flinches when a light is shone into his eyes and he covers them, too sensitive to see. "Holy shit," someone whispers, and the light goes away. "You okay man? Guys, there's a guy over here!" Footsteps approach, heavy in his ears. "Can you hear me? You speak English?"

He bares his teeth at the voice, scrambling back when he sees hands reaching for him. He lashes out but there's a hand around his ankle, pulling him out from the dumpster. He claws at the ground, kicking out wildly, but his blunt nails can't find the purchase and his legs feel weak. The light is shone on his face again and he glares at it, squinting and shielding his eyes.

"Hey, hey, it's alright." The voice is quiet but he can hear the strain in it, hear the pounding of the man's heart. They look human – they look like him. He stops fighting and sits up as the man with the light kneels down. "Can you hear me?"

He blinks, lifting his eyes. This man's eyes are dark, brown like dirt, his face a darker color than his. His hair is dark, too. He doesn't have a voice as soothing as that other man's but it's gentle all the same. He looks at the other man – this one is large, large enough to be a threat. He flinches from that man with orange-white hair.

"Abe, give him some space," the man says, and the big man sits back, his brow furrowed. "Hey," the first man says, reaching out to touch his knee. He flinches, whining softly. He doesn't see them as orange and red, _alive_ anymore. In comparison they look ghostly and weak. "Hey, it's alright. No one's gonna hurt you."

_It's okay, I'm here. Not gonna let 'im hurt you no more._

A vision washes over his brain, flinging him away from reality and into somewhere _before_ , with white walls and lights that could dim or brighten on command. He aches for that room, that man. He shakes his head as the vision clears away.

He licks his lips, his mouth dry, and opens his mouth. "I…"

"Yeah? What's your name?" the first man says, encouraging him with a smile. It shows his teeth but doesn't look aggressive. "My name's Glenn – this is my friend Abraham. What's your name?"

He thinks for a moment, before letting out a soft moan and putting his head in his hands. He shakes his head violently enough that the metal under his skin shifts and prods and it hurts, _it hurts_. "I -." Words crash into him, thousands of them, things that he's heard, things he's said. "I can't – I don't -."

"It's okay," Glenn says, touching his knee again. "It's okay. Calm down. Look at me?"

He lifts his eyes. They're burning, itching like something is chewing on the insides of them. He rubs them and looks away, baring his teeth when the other man stands. "Butter my ballsack," Abraham says, his eyes wide. "He's Omega."

Glenn lets out a soft breath and he skitters back, his skin crawling. He's heard the word before but doesn't understand what it means. "He musta… _come_ from somewhere," Glenn says, looking up at his companion. "There aren't any wild Omegas anymore."

"He'll be chipped," Abraham says. "We should bring him to Negan."

Although he doesn't know the name, he balks at it because he knows it's not _his_ name. He shakes his head and snarls at them and Glenn and Abraham step back as he shoves himself to his feet. He can feel his teeth lengthening again, ready to fight.

"Shit," Abraham says.

"Grab his neck," Glenn says. "I remember that they're weak there."

Abraham nods, stepping forward, and he snarls and lunges for them. He can smell their fear, white-hot in the pit of their chests. Abraham stumbles back with a low, ugly-sounding word and then he turns and runs, fleeing out of the end of the alley and into the street beyond.

The buildings here look like they were ravaged by a storm. None of the windows are whole and the ground is covered in debris and black slime. He turns back and growls at the other men as they approach him, wary and afraid.

"Hey, hey," Glenn says, his hands down and out in a peaceful gesture as he keeps walking towards him. He hisses, baring his teeth. His leg hits the side of an abandoned car, the metal sun-warm to the touch. He stumbles and scrambles back, snarling again. "Fuck, Abe, he's feral. The Hell we gonna do?"

"I guess call for backup," Abraham mutters. He reaches into his pocket to pull out a small device and his eyes narrow, locking in on it. He lunges for the bigger man and snaps at his thing, smelling the metal on it, able to feel the thrum of life in it even though it doesn't look like a living thing. Abraham shouts, dropping it, but he manages to get an arm around his injured shoulder and a hand goes to the nape of his neck.

He goes limp abruptly, falling to his knees, breathing hard. His fingers are twitching and his claws suddenly retract, as do his teeth, leaving him vulnerable and blunt again. He can't force himself to move, and pants heavily, staring down at the floor.

"Good job," Glenn says. He puts his light away and wraps an arm under his, pulling him to his feet. He can't even snap his jaws at either of them, paralyzed by the hand at the nape of his neck. "Let's get the fuck outta here."

 

 

 

 

They find a piece of rope and wrap it tightly around his neck, fitting a piece of it in his mouth like a makeshift muzzle. It keeps constant pressure at his nape and renders him docile enough to move. They have a big vehicle on wheels and haul him up into it. He wants to claw at the thing around his neck but he can't bring his hands to move, nor make his claws sharp enough to tear at the rope. Then the thing starts rumbling and moving and he lets out a low whimper.

"It'll be okay," Glenn says, petting through his bloody hair. He looks up at the other man and tries to growl but nothing comes out. Glenn offers him a smile. "Once we find out where you came from we can get you back there and everything will be alright."

He groans, rolling onto his back. His eyes don't itch anymore and he isn't seeing in heat, but his insides feel cold and shivery. He's starting to sweat, his bared skin breaking out into goose bumps that shine with water as he trembles on the ground by Glenn's feet. The truck moves slowly, trundling along, but feels break-neck.

 _Let me go_ , he wants to say. _Please. I just want to go_. But he can't speak, and even if he could he doesn't know if he can make his mouth work. His stomach clenches up and he rolls onto his knees, body shaking as he starts to dry-heave. This feels familiar, his body knows this feeling – it's how he would get whenever the man would be gone for too long.

Then a gentle hand in his hair, a low voice soothing him. "It's okay, darlin', I'm here." A warm body covering his, softly touching the places where metal and skin meshed together as they healed. He remembers the man would give him something to help him sleep and then he'd wake up feeling better.

He opens his eyes when he feels the truck rumbling to a stop. He hears other voices, loads of them, speaking and yelling over each other. He whimpers and shakes his head, wanting it gone like he does the visions. He hears Abraham speaking.

"Tell Negan we found something he's going to be very interested in," he says. Then there's light flooding the darkness of the truck and he flinches, whining and curling up against Glenn like the man will offer some sort of protection.

Strong hands yank him out of the truck and onto the ground. "You don't gotta do that!" Glenn yells. "We got him collared. He won't fight."

"Can't take any chances with Omegas," comes the reply. The man who speaks has dark eyes like Glenn but they're not kind. They're sharp and small, narrowed in his head. He lifts his upper lip and feels his eyes flash in anger. "You're too young to remember what it was like when these things used to run wild."

"I remember," Glenn says coldly. "You don't gotta hurt him. His Alpha will be pissed."

The word conjures something in him and the need sharpens and brightens until it feels like someone is shining a light in his chest and it hurts. He rolls to his knees and his hands drop when he feels someone undoing the rope from his mouth so that he can speak. They don't remove it from around his neck and he trembles finely, looking up at the men gathered around him.

"Fuck," one of them whispers. "Never seen a real-life Omega before."

"They're pretty much extinct," another one says. "After the war. None of 'em natural anymore."

He curls his lip back and growls, but ducks his head. He can feel _something_ coming – it feels wrong, crawling along his skin like quicksand as he slowly starts to sink. A shadow falls across him, blocking out the sun, and he hears a low whistle.

"Well, _shit_ ," the man says, drawing out the word. "You boys done alright by me."

"We need to scan his chip," Glenn says. "See who he belongs to."

"And why is that?"

A pause. "He'll…he'll go into withdrawal without his Alpha. We need to get him back -."

"Nah, he ain't bonded to no one," the man says – the dark man with a dark look when he lifts his head. A long piece of wood wrapped in sharp metal tucks itself under his chin and forces him to lift his eyes. There's a man crouching in front of him and unlike the others, he can smell something on this man that's foul and reeks. He's Alpha – all men are Alphas now, he realizes, like some inkling down in the superconscious of his species – but he's the _wrong_ one. "Are ya, sweetheart? You remember me?"

He blinks, and snarls. The man chuckles and straightens up. "Thought you could get away from me, huh?" he says, nudging at the Omega's hand with his boot. He flinches and curls up on himself. "Thought after the first coupl'a weeks maybe you'd succeeded, but of course, you can't stay away, can you?" He laughs again. "I have something you want."

Hands grab him and haul him to his feet. He struggles weakly, unable to get up the courage to fight with the rope around his neck. The man with the weapon leans in and takes a deep breath at his throat and he growls.

"Fuck, I missed you, boy," he says, eyes flashing red in a way that makes the Omega feel afraid – fear coils up like a snake around his spine, and then the Alpha smiles slowly, baring wicked-looking fangs. "Take him back to his room."

"He doesn't belong here!" He can hear Glenn protesting as he's hauled away, through a fence and then into a dark building. The air is cold and makes his sweaty skin ache, the metal in him freezing solid with fear. "Negan, we have to take him back to his Alpha! He'll die!"

The man with the weapon – Negan, he guesses – laughs again, and then his laughter dies out as the door closes. He's led to a room and pushed inside. At once he's overcome with an assault of scents – familiar ones. He's been in this room before. He recognizes the dim lights, the pile of blankets in the corner, the table he had to lay on sometimes for his skin grafts and operations.

He whimpers and falls to his knees as the door closes, the other men leaving him alone inside. He hears something stirring from the pile of blankets and scrambles away from it, a low sound of fear escaping him. The blankets move and shift and then fall away to reveal the body of a man, who sits up and stares at him.

"… _Daryl_?"

 _Daryl_.

That name – _his name_. He gasps, his hands flying to his head as though to contain it as another wave of visions hit him – _Daryl_. The warm touch on the back of his neck that had felt calming rather than controlling. A hand petting through his hair while he shook and trembled. A mouth, kissing his forehead, his neck, licking up the tears from his cheeks and cleaning him of sweat.

"Daryl," he whispers, shaking his head violently. "My – my name…. My name is Daryl."

"Daryl," the other man says again, crawling towards him slowly. Daryl can't lift his head or look but he flinches away when a warm touch lands on his shoulder.

"Please," he says, weakly. "Don't touch me."

"Daryl, c'mon baby," comes the reply, just as weak and wounded sounding. "Don't you remember me?"

Daryl remembers his voice, his eyes. He can't _lift his head_. He flinches again when he feels hands go to the rope around his neck and suddenly they're loose and Daryl snarls, lashing out with his claws and fangs. He lunges at the other man and pins him down, digging his nails around his collarbone and baring his teeth.

The other man is still, shaking underneath him. He's blue with fear, so hot he shines with it. Daryl can't see him clearly, all blurry in the darkness, but he can _smell_ him. He smells familiar, and he smells like _Daryl_.

 _Daryl –_ hands on his hips and trailing reverently up his chest, calming him through the worst of the tremors. A bite to the back of his neck, hastily done before anyone else could hear them. Daryl shakes and lets go, lifting his hand to feel at the scar on the side of his throat.

The man lifts his hand, fingers shaking, and touches Daryl's cheek. "I know you remember me," he says, his voice rumbling and soft. Daryl feels a purr forming in his chest and swallows it back. He snaps his jaws and crawls away to the empty corner of the room. His vision is starting to dim and he moans, clawing at the skin on his shoulder. It _hurts_.

"I'm here," the man says, and Daryl lifts his head. His eyes aren't seeing right anymore, but he can make out features. He can see, when he blinks and narrows his eyes, the familiar shape in the dull, blurry air. Then he blinks again and everything sharpens.

The man smiles and Daryl gasps. "There you are," he says. He doesn't reach out for Daryl again but it looks like he desperately wants to. Daryl wants to as well, with a need and desperation he doesn't understand. He doesn't fight it, instinct in him telling him to nuzzle against this man, to breath in his scent and lick up the blood on his neck, shed by Daryl's hand.

A large, strong hand wraps in his hair when he does it, the man's low purr rumbling in something calming and Alpha. _Alpha_ , how Alphas are supposed to smell – or at least, this one is the first one that's smelled good. He smells like home. Daryl knows this Alpha.

"Your name," he says. "Tell me."

He can feel the Alpha smile. "Rick," he replies.

"Rick." The name doesn't trigger another vision, but Daryl knows this is the man he's been seeing. He curls up close to him and breathes out, shuddering on the exhale.

"Daryl, you were supposed to be gone," Rick says after a moment. He runs a hand through Daryl's hair and pulls him back so they're eye to eye. The blue is familiar, bright and worried and Daryl wants to rub his head against Rick's until it goes away. "I got you out. You were supposed to be _gone_."

Daryl doesn't remember. Why can't he remember? He lets out a low sound of distress.

"It's okay," Rick says, pulling him into another embrace. "I got you out once, I can do it again. Just gotta trust me, baby. Can you do that?"

Daryl hums, nuzzling against Rick's neck and licking up the blood he's spilled. The taste of it makes him feel hungry. His mind is burning with questions, but he nods – because this Alpha smells of home and harmony and if he asks for trust, Daryl can give him that.

Rick smiles, and cups Daryl's cheek, tilting his head for a kiss. "Alright," he says, his voice low. "I'll get you outta here. I promise."

 


	2. Chapter 2

A few hours pass, Rick and Daryl curled up together in the dark room, and then the door opens and some raw meat is flung inside. Daryl snarls immediately, his eyes burning, he lunges out of Rick's grasp and collides with the door just as it closes. There are claw marks there, old and dirty, and his hands make new ones and he claws and fights against the door with a snarl.

Then, the scent of the meat reaches him and he turns, falling over it and ripping into it with a vengeance. The meat tastes old and salty but he eats it all, ripping it into pieces that he swallows whole. His jaws tear at the meat, his chin soaking in blood and juice as he consumes it.

It's gone within moments and Daryl growls, slinking around and looking for more food. His vision clears away after a moment and he moans, pain hitting him as his claws and teeth retract. He looks up and sees Rick staring at him, his eyes that same pretty blue with a thin ring of red around the iris to mark him as an Alpha.

Daryl shakes his head violently and holds his head, moaning again. "Why can't I remember anything?" he demands, curling up on himself. He's cold in the room without clothes and without Rick's heat, the metal under his skin feels like ice. He wants to shed his skin again and claw it away, claw the metal _out_.

Rick lets out a soft sigh. "I wiped your memory before I got you out," he says, and Daryl lifts his head. "I thought…I thought if you didn't remember, then you wouldn't come back for me."

Daryl closes his eyes, gritting his teeth at the ache in his skull. Is there metal there, too? His head _hurts_. He can feel, when he gently runs his fingertips over his temples, that his skin is slightly pebbled there. Like he's been burned. He runs his fingers through his hair to hide the marks.

"I don't know you," Daryl says. "But I know you."

He _does_ know this man – this Alpha. It feels like there's a fishing hook in his mouth, pulling him back towards Rick, and he crawls over. Rick is thin, his bones standing out where his clothes doesn't cover his skin around his neck and his arms. He's probably starving, and Daryl just ate all of his food. He lets out a low whimper and rubs his cheek against Rick's shoulder, purring lowly when Rick wraps a hand in his hair and holds him close.

"Your memories will probably come back in time," Rick says. Daryl nods, aching to remember – this room is familiar, he's spent a lot of time here. It smells like him, _Rick_ smells like him, despite their separation. Negan had said it had been weeks.

"How long was I gone?"

"Almost three months," Rick replies, his mouth at Daryl's temple. Daryl curls up against him, his knees tucked up and resting on Rick's thigh, his shoulder against Rick's chest. The Alpha's heartbeat is strong and steady.

"Did Negan hurt you?" he asks, understanding that, somehow, Rick must have been able to help him escape. That Alpha had seemed very pleased to have him back – Daryl wonders what he did here, what he _was_. The word _Omega_ stirs something in him, some half-flickering light of memory, but it won't flare and reveal itself to him.

Rick sighs. "We shouldn't talk about that."

"I feel sick," Daryl says. "I feel _wrong_."

Rick makes a soft, sympathetic noise. "I'm sorry," he says, and he sounds genuinely guilty about that. It must be his fault, somehow. Daryl remembers lying down on that table, fading in and out of consciousness but there was always Rick, he was always there to soothe him and help him sleep. Something flickers in his head again and his eyes start to itch, that same feeling overcoming him that had led to whatever showed in his eyes to make Abraham and Glenn recognize him for what he was.

He thinks of those Alphas and frowns. "Glenn said I'll die without my Alpha," he says. Rick's hand tightens in his hair. "Was he right?"

Rick nods.

"Negan doesn't seem to think I have one."

"I made sure of that," Rick replies. "No one could know about…about us."

"Us?"

"You and me," Rick says quietly. Then, he sighs. "I don't know how much you're ready to hear."

"Everything," Daryl says, sitting up and looking at Rick. He rests a hand on Rick's chest and tightens his grip in the Alpha's shirt. "Tell me everything. I want to remember."

Rick looks at him for a long moment, searching his face, before he sighs and rubs a hand over his eyes and down over his mouth. He shakes his head. "People like you don't exist anymore, Daryl," he starts. "Omegas with free will, with a mind of their own. They were all wiped out years ago."

Daryl frowns, drawing his hand away. "People like me?"

"Omegas are…dangerous," Rick says. Daryl remembers smelling Rick's fear, how Glenn and Abraham had been so tense and afraid once they'd realized what he was. "They're men capable of bearing young but it makes them…aggressive. Alphas didn't stand a chance. There's something chemical in us that makes us… _weak_."

"I don't understand," Daryl growls, turning away and sitting upright so that his and Rick's positions are mirrored, their backs to the wall, knees pulled up. He looks at his hands and sees his nails are blunt but there's red under them from tearing into the meat, from bleeding when he'd destroyed the alley. His skin has healed but the blood and dirt remains.

Rick looks at him. Daryl can feel his eyes on the side of his face but he doesn't turn his head. He feels calmer than he ever remembers in Rick's presence – but then again, his memories are apparently less than serviceable right now. "Years ago, Alpha and Omega bonds were known to be some of the strongest known to humans," Rick says. "A bonded Omega has the strength and loyalty of ten men."

"Bonded," Daryl repeats, frowning. "Is that what we are?"

He sees Rick smile. "Yes," he says. "But no one can know."

"Why?"

"What I said – that people like you don't exist anymore – it's true. Omegas are pretty much extinct. If a bonded Omega's Alpha dies, they become…less than human. Mindless. Sometimes they become violent and have to be put down. Sometimes they just check out, I guess. I can't let either happen to you."

"Is that why you wiped my memories?" Daryl asks. "Did you -? There's metal in my skin. Did you do that, too?"

Rick nods. "I found you while I was on a run, months ago," he says. "You were almost dead, as good as. Too weak to fight me. I knew what you were the second I saw you – I could _smell_ you, and I knew. I brought you here and tried to save your life and I succeeded. But I couldn't keep you a secret. Negan found out, and he wanted to use you for himself."

Daryl growls, upper lip curling back. His fingers curl, nails sharpening for a moment.

"Like I said, a loyal Omega is the best soldier in the world." Rick looks away and shakes his head again. "And Omegas can only bear other Omegas. A whole army of vicious, strong soldiers loyal to Negan is his dream. It's all he cares about. I couldn't let him do that to you. So I had to get you out."

"But I can't stay away," Daryl murmurs. "Negan knows that…. He said 'I have something you want'. Did he mean you?"

"Maybe," Rick says, wiping his hand over his mouth again. He looks tired, and weak – so unlike the man that Daryl remembers. Three months. He's probably been trapped in here for three months, surrounded by the scent of his Omega and unable to touch him. When Daryl reaches for him he can feel the desperation in Rick, aching for his touch like Daryl is feeling it himself. Or maybe he is. Is this what a bond feels like? How can he be bonded to a man he barely knows?

All he knows is that the thought of curling up like this with Negan, of feeling Negan's hand in his hair and his heartbeat under Daryl's cheek fills him with revulsion. Whatever he is, he is not loyal to Negan, nor is he willing to bond with him. "They'll kill you if I get out again," Daryl murmurs.

Rick nods. "Probably."

"Then what's the point?" Daryl asks. "If they kill you, and with all you've said…I might as well be dead, too."

Rick's eyes flash a bloody red. "No," he says with a low growl. "No, I'll make sure that…"

"You gonna wipe my memories again?" Daryl says, turning and pushing himself to his feet with a snarl. Rick looks up at him, his eyes red and Daryl's own eyes are itching and he doesn't remember what color Omega's eyes are but he knows his are that color now. "You don't have that right. You don't _own_ me."

"I created you," Rick says. "You owe me your life."

"And you owe me yours!" Daryl snarls, advancing on Rick. Some instinct in him must rise up because Rick gets to his feet as well and they're the same height but Rick is a little smaller than him and Daryl knows he has the physical strength to outmatch him. He grabs Rick's shirt and slams him back against the wall and Rick winces. "I ain't goin' _anywhere_ without you."

"Daryl, there's only two ways this plays out," Rick says. His heartbeat is flying under Daryl's hands and Daryl can smell his fear – how is it that Rick can be so afraid of him? "Either Negan takes you from me and forces a bond, or he kills me and breeds you out. There's no way to _win_ with him. I've _tried_."

Daryl snarls, hauling Rick away from the wall and forcing him into the center of the room. He lets go, giving them both room to circle each other. "There's somethin' you're not tellin' me," he accuses. He hardly recognizes his own voice – his anger has made his vision sharpen, Rick's outline fading to black and the heat of his life centered in his chest. Hunger and anger swirl inside Daryl, something ugly and dark.

"There's a lot I'm not tellin' you," Rick says. His voice feels lower, rumbling down Daryl's spine. A vision of that same feeling hits him, a rumbling purr in his Alpha's chest as he would touch Daryl and lick over the nape of his neck – a bite, shallow and swift. A _bond_. Daryl touches the scar on his neck again and shakes his head. "You're not ready."

"The Hell I ain't!" Daryl hisses.

There's a knock on the door, heavy and thudding, and Daryl turns towards it with a snarl. Rick immediately takes a spot in front of him which Daryl doesn't like, but he remains still as the door swings open and he recognizes Negan's silhouette, even though his vision still only lets him see the colors of heat and darkness. He snarls again.

"Rick! Daryl's back, isn't that great?" Negan says jovially. His voice feels low as well, Alpha-rumbling, and Daryl growls and shakes his head because it feels much less pleasant than Rick's does. This must be what he was talking about, the loyalty and the bond forcing him to hate the sound and scent of other Alphas. He wishes he could _remember_.

He hears Rick's rumbling voice; "Yeah, it is," he says, but it sounds weak. Rick's head is ducked down in submission, his shoulders curled in. Still, he doesn't move from blocking Daryl's body from Negan's eyes. Daryl starts to pace, back and forth but keeping Rick's silhouette in his line of sight. "His memory's been wiped. He ain't any use to anyone right now."

Negan laughs. There are shadows moving behind him, other curious Alphas desperate to get a glimpse at the first aware Omega they've probably seen in years. Daryl can feel them watching him and his fangs are sharp and bared, his throat dry, he's _hungry_. He wants to rip into all of these Alphas and consume them.

"I'm tired of being patient with you, Rick," Negan says. He taps the metal-wrapped bat against the open door. "I'm tired of your excuses. Get me something workable within a week or I'll find someone else who can."

A fine tremor runs through Rick's body and he nods. "Understood," he says, and Negan smiles and leaves the room, shutting it behind him. Daryl snarls and lunges for the door again, slamming his shoulder against it until it buckles. He can hear laughter and hollering on the other side of it.

"Daryl, don't," Rick says, and Daryl can feel him reaching out so he turns and snarls at the Alpha, staying his hand. His body feels like it's burning, golden-bright like fire. He drags his claws down the door just to hear the shriek of metal giving underneath it. He could rip his way out of here and destroy anyone who gets in his way.

But Rick isn't so strong. Daryl doesn't understand – aren't Alphas by nature meant to be bigger, meaner, louder? He feels like this is true. There must be _some_ power in Alphas otherwise how could they bond to someone like him?

He takes a deep breath, forcing his vision to clear so that he can see the door and when he looks back at Rick he sees skin and flesh and not heat anymore. He feels tired, and his hands hurt. His nails are bleeding and he looks down at them as they heal.

Rick sighs. "I didn't just fix you," he confesses quietly. "I made you…better. _More_. I had to make it so that you could survive without me."

"The metal," Daryl says. "Was that you?"

"Yes," Rick replies. "When I found you…I don't know what happened to you. It looked like something attacked you. Your leg was shredded, your shoulder almost gone. I had to find ways to fix you and then encourage healing."

"What _is_ this place?"

Rick turns away and goes back to the pile of blankets, sitting down heavily. Daryl can't sit down – he's trembling and jittery. Rick runs his hands through his hair. "They call it Eden," he says, looking up. "Negan's group – he calls them the Saviors. They're meant to fix the world."

Recognition flickers in Daryl's brain. The world is destroyed, has been for years. From…from fighting. Fire. There was so much _fire_. His body is burning up. "You did this to me," he whispers, leaning his head against the door. The metal there, at least, is cool. "It's your fault I'm here."

"I know," Rick says.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"Because I…" Rick looks up at him, his eyes wide and shining in the low light. "Because I smelled you, and I couldn't be without you. It's the way the world is." Daryl nods, recognizing that in another flicker of superconscious memory. An Omega and woman for every Alpha – a perfect mate for every one of his kind. "I'm so sorry. For everything I've done. If I'd known -."

"I don't forgive you," Daryl says, opening his eyes. They don't itch anymore. He looks back at the Alpha. "But I know you. I need you."

Rick manages a weak smile, and nods.

Daryl sighs and moves away from the door, towards Rick, and lays down beside him, his back to the Alpha and his legs against the wall. He uses Rick's thigh as a pillow and closes his eyes. "It's all or nothin'," Daryl says. "Either we both get outta here, or none of us do."

"Daryl, you don't understand what that means."

"Don't gotta."

Daryl lifts his head to glare at Rick and Rick goes silent, turning his face away. His throat is pale, deprived of sunlight. Daryl remembers him being darker. He also remembers, suddenly, when Rick's neck tastes like under his tongue. He licks his lips and lays his head back down.

They sit in silence for a long time, Daryl lost in thought, Rick maybe too. Daryl doesn't watch his face – perhaps the Alpha's mind is running as fast as his is. Rick is obviously smart, to be able to fix and enhance Daryl in the way he's claimed. Maybe he's some kind of scientist. Daryl doesn’t know what he used to be. He hopes he remembers soon.

"Negan wants soldiers," he says after a moment. "Omega ones. Purebred ones." Rick hums in acknowledgement. "Do they have to be his?"

He can _hear_ Rick frown. "What do you mean?"

"I _mean_ , if I breed, and give him what he wants – do they have to be by him?"

Rick goes tense, a low rumble of displeasure sitting low in his chest. "That's probably what he has in mind," he says slowly. Daryl nods, licking his lips. "But it won't matter. An unbonded Omega can breed with anyone, but a bonded one will only…"

Daryl sits up and turns to look at Rick. The Alpha's eyes are wide, and he looks up and meets Daryl's eyes, and then shakes his head and shoves himself to his feet. "No," he says, sounding angry. He paces to the center of the room and then turns on Daryl, baring his fangs. " _No_. I know what you're thinking. He'll kill me if I -."

Daryl frowns and touches his neck again. "Haven't you already?" he asks.

" _No_ ," Rick says. Then he takes a deep breath. His eyes are bleeding back to red, Daryl can smell him so strongly in the blankets and in the room. He smells wild and _alive_. "No. I've never touched you like that. Even when you went into Heat."

"Why?" Daryl demands.

"Because if I…" Rick takes a deep breath. "Because if I knew you were pregnant I couldn't let you go. Damn it, Daryl, I almost lost my mind the first time. I'm not in this room as some sorta _punishment_ , I -." He shakes his head and looks away again, his fingers curling. "I hurt people."

"And what do you think you'll do, when Negan comes for me?" Daryl says quietly. "He gave you a week, Rick. What do you think you'll do? What do you think _I'll_ do?"

Rick looks back at him and heaves another breath. "Then we gotta be gone by then," he says.

Daryl smiles. " _We_?"

Rick's eyes flash, and he smiles back – uneven and predatory. "You're a smart one," he says, making Daryl's smile widen. Rick returns to him, prowling close and rubbing his forehead against Daryl's until they're both laying down, entangled in the old blankets.

"I don't know how Negan can't know," Daryl says. Rick growls quietly and presses his nose against Daryl's neck, breathing in his scent deeply. Daryl rolls onto his stomach and lets Rick sprawl on top of him. He knows this embrace. The burning in his chest feels calmer now and more natural. Rick feels like a warm, comfortable weight against his back as the Alpha rests his head against Daryl's spine, his chest over the Omega's legs. Touch-starved.

Rick huffs a laugh, tightening his arm where it rests against Daryl's side. "Alphas aren't the smartest," he says, and Daryl laughs. "You smell like me because I'm in this room so much, and even unbonded your scent would have been enough to calm me down." He shrugs. "Maybe he just likes being blind."

"He'll know by the end," Daryl says. "I'll rip his throat out and make sure he knows."

Rick laughs again. "I missed you," he murmurs, nuzzling against Daryl's back. Daryl hums, purring softly at the affection in his Alpha's voice. His head is starting to hurt again and he closes his eyes, turning his face away from the light. He falls asleep to Rick's hand gently petting up and down his flank, the Alpha's own purr vibrating gently above him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Graphic violence and murder in this chapter.

Daryl wakes when the door opens and more meat is flung inside. His teeth immediately grow and his nails sharpen and he scrambles out from under Rick, diving for the meat as the door closes again. He tears into it, ravenous as though he hasn't eaten in days.

He eats almost all of it but stops himself when he hears Rick move and wake up. The Alpha lets out a tired, pleading noise and it stays Daryl's hand. He looks up, seeing the weak heat of Rick's body as the Alpha stares at him. He blinks, his vision sharpening back to normal and looks down at what's left of the food in his hands.

He crawls back over and offers it to Rick who shakes his head. "You need it more than I do."

"Bullshit," Daryl replies. He holds the meat out and Rick takes it after a moment with a quiet sigh. He obviously doesn't relish eating it raw like Daryl goes but he still eats it, gagging at the taste as the cold, salty meat slides down his throat. Daryl purrs when he's done, rubbing his head against Rick's shoulder like a contented cat.

"Thank you," Rick says, nuzzling against Daryl. The tone of his voice sounds incredibly grateful, like Daryl has given him a generous offering despite almost taking another meal for himself. Daryl frowns and curls up around the Alpha.

"Is it an Omega thing?" he asks after a moment, looking down at his hands. "This…the claws? The teeth? Or did you do that to me too?"

Rick sighs. "A little of both," he replies. "There's a reason people should be afraid of people like you."

Daryl shakes his head. "I don't like it when you talk about me like that," he says. Rick makes a curious sound. "Like I'm something _other_. Inhuman."

"But you are," Rick replies. He doesn't sound judgmental or superior when he says it.

"I'm still _human_ ," Daryl snaps back. "Aren't I?"

"Yes," Rick says with a nod. He runs a hand through Daryl's hair and Daryl closes his eyes, letting out a soft purr at the touch. The door opens again and they separate and stand and Daryl bares his teeth when he sees Negan's shadow clouding the doorway.

"Test time!" Negan says with a big grin.

Rick goes tense. "I thought you said I had a week," he says.

"I say a lot of things," Negan replies, his grin never wavering. He points at Daryl with his weapon. "C'mon, sunshine. Time to show me if all that time away from us made you soft."

Daryl doesn't understand what that means. He's never felt stronger. He snarls at Negan and Rick steps forward, clouding his periphery. "You can't just – he's too weak. He's not ready."

"I'll be the judge of that," Negan says. His eyes and his voice have gone cold. "Unless there's something else I should know about."

Rick hesitates. The silence stretches on, and Daryl growls quietly. His vision doesn't go dark again. He can see Negan plain as day. He's dressed comfortably and warm. Daryl remembers that it's cold in the outside air.

He steps towards Negan, his skin crawling the closer he gets to that Alpha and the farther he gets from Rick. He thinks he might be able to feel Rick's desperate need to stop him going to Negan but Rick doesn't move. Like he's frozen where he stands.

Daryl walks until he's at a distance where Negan could reach out and touch him if he so chose. He wonders how easy it might be to rip out Negan's throat and take this whole complex one Alpha at a time. He could do it, fight until he can't even stand. If there was any guarantee Rick would make it out alive, he would. But he can't take that chance, with too many unknowns.

He takes a breath and something flickers in his head at Negan's scent. It's clean, much cleaner than he or Rick is, but still smells wrong. Still, he draws on something deep-seated and instinctual. Omegas are dangerous, Alphas are _afraid_ of them. He can use that to his advantage. He thinks about how he might act if it were Rick in front of him, what he would do to charm and seduce the Alpha into giving him what he wanted.

He lifts his eyes but keeps his head ducked low, his gaze coy under his lashes. "What would you have me do?" he asks, his voice soft and high. Negan's coldness abruptly melts and the Alpha lets out a low, rumbling purr much like Rick's but less pleasant to Daryl's ears. He fights the urge to snarl.

Negan reaches for him and slides a hand through his hair and he can _feel_ Rick's anger, dirty and dark sliding up his nape across the touch like Rick is physically wiping away Negan's mark from his skin. He takes another step closer and submits to the touch, hoping Rick can sense his own revulsion and hatred when Negan touches him. They're bonded, right? That has to _mean_ something even if Daryl can't remember what.

"That's my boy," Negan says quietly, resting their foreheads together. Daryl meets his eyes and tries to imagine that it's Rick touching him instead, and he whines quietly, supplicating, and brushes a hand against Negan's clothed chest. "I want you to come with me."

"Should I come with?" Rick's voice is cold and angry, Daryl can't turn his head to look but he imagines Rick's eyes are red, fiery and ready to lash out.

Negan pulls away to look over Daryl's shoulder but doesn't let go of Daryl's hair. Daryl sighs and tucks his head against Negan's bicep, letting the Alpha embrace him more fully. Every part of him that's touching Negan feels like it's burning. He wonders how quickly he could move to slice Negan's throat, or rip off his arm. He wonders what would fall first: Negan's weapon or Daryl's claws.

"Sure," Negan says with a pleased rumble. He's smiling. "Every man should see his life's work."

Rick nods and then Negan pulls away, still holding Daryl's hair, and leads them out of the room. The hallway outside is chill and smells vaguely like fire and ash. Daryl shivers, folding his arms across his chest and more aware than ever of his state of undress. Rick hadn't seemed to notice, and Daryl remembers that he would touch Daryl regardless of how many layers were between them as though there was nothing there. Still, he'd shredded most of his clothing and now what he has on barely keeps him modest. His chest is bloody and bare, his feet without shoes and his lower legs exposed to the air.

"You see, Daryl," Negan explains as they walk. "I like to keep a tight ship around here. There are certain rules, and if those rules are disobeyed there's only really one recourse. Alphas don't understand anything else, I'm sure you get it."

Daryl grunts, sure that Negan is expecting some kind of answer.

Negan chuckles. He opens another door and they step out into the sunlight, so bright that Daryl has to lift a hand to shield his sensitive eyes. He's led into a large open space and the scent of Alpha and blood is almost overwhelming. He fights the urge to gag.

As his eyes adjust to the light he becomes aware that the three of them aren't the only people in the space. There are dozens of others, packed in a tight ring but they part as Negan, Daryl and Rick pass. Rick follows closely behind, tense and thrumming with energy. Daryl wants to reach back and soothe him but he knows he can't show any signs of favoring the Alpha, with Negan so close. He presses his lips together and tries to remain calm.

Negan leads him through the group and he can hear low murmurs and rumbles as the Alphas talk to one another. His ears are ringing and his head hurts and he can't make out what they're saying.

Negan brings him to the center of the group and he realizes that he's been led into a ring. There are waist-high walls surrounding him, keeping the rest of the saviors separate from him. Negan lets his hair go and Daryl takes a step away, growling softly.

"My friends!" Negan says, holding his arms out broadly, his wire-wrapped weapon held loosely. Daryl wants to bite it, feel the wood splinter and give under his teeth. He wants to feel the barbs biting against his skin and under his nails as he rips it clean.

His eyes find Rick and Rick is behind the wall, his eyes wide and worried. He's breathing heavily, from stress. Daryl's fingers twitch and he looks around again, doing his best to count the faces. There are dozens of people, Alphas and women alike. They're all looking at him with a wide-eyed wonder and fear, like he's some particularly dangerous and exotic animal.

"My friends," Negan says again, "you're all aware by now, I'm sure, that Glenn and Abraham found something very rare on their run the other day. Daryl." He uses the weapon to point at Daryl and Daryl goes still, ducking his head down as Negan turns red eyes on him. "Daryl here has actually been an Eden resident for some time. He got out, and now he's come back to us."

 _Omega. Omega. A real-life Omega._ Daryl can hear them now, whispering the word between themselves, the murmuring growing louder as Negan allows the truth of that to sink in. _There's been an Omega here this whole time._

Daryl looks around and sees Glenn in the front row of the ring, his eyes wide and sad. He mouths something to Daryl and Daryl's eyes narrow, making out the words 'I'm so sorry'. He shakes his head and looks away again. Glenn brought him back to Rick. Even if Daryl didn't know what that would have meant for him, he's not unhappy with that development. Rick is his Alpha. Without his Alpha, he'll die. Daryl owes Glenn his life.

Daryl lifts his head as he's aware of a commotion. The group is moving, parting as an Alpha is brought forward. He's struggling, fangs bared and eyes red, and brought to the front of the group and thrown into the ring with him and Negan. The Alpha falls to his knees, looking up with wide eyes at their leader. Negan smiles.

"Show of hands," he says, raising his own. "How many of you remember Omega fights?" There's a scattering of assent. "Fucking hot as _shit_ , am I right?" Laughter. "How many of you want to see that again?"

There's a small round of whoops and hollers, gaining volume. Daryl's eyes widen as he looks at the kneeling Alpha. The Alpha is looking right back at him. His eyes are wholly red so Daryl can't tell what color they normally are. He bares his teeth, skin prickling, and the Alpha snarls right back at him.

Daryl blinks, taking a step back. Somehow he hadn't expected the Alpha to rise to his challenge. Everyone else is so afraid of him. Maybe this Alpha is strong. Maybe he doesn't know any better. He looks into the Alpha's eyes and another memory, dim and faded, rises up in him. Alphas have fangs like that, but only their canines sharpen and elongate. This Alpha has every tooth sharpened and ready like those of a dog. He's succumbed to something more raw than what he normally is. Maybe it's fear or rage or some other ingrained thing but he's ready to _fight_ Daryl – or he'll try and do something else and Daryl will rip his throat out.

He realizes, abruptly, what Negan wants him to do. Negan wants him to fight this Alpha. He wants Daryl to kill him. The knowledges settles heavily in his stomach and he thinks he might be sick.

"Spencer here," Negan says, oblivious to Daryl's thoughts. He shoves his weapon against the Alpha's – Spencer's – head and Spencer snarls. "Well, Spencer here broke the rules. Tried to sneak a little tail from someone less than willing, isn't that right?"

Spencer hisses, his fingers curling. He doesn't have claws but he has teeth and Daryl feels his vision start to change. He looks at Rick and finds the Alpha watching him, shaking his head, his fingers curling into the half-wall separating them. Daryl wants to run, to grab Rick and just _go,_ but there are too many people. They'd never make it out.

This is what Negan wants. A show of loyalty, of proof that Rick is doing his job and Daryl needs to give it to him. His vision has almost completely changed until the shapes are all dark and all he can see is heat. When he looks back at Spencer he gasps. The heat of him is white, pure white, lit with rage. He's _dangerous_. Berserk.

Daryl snarls and starts to pace.

He hears Negan laugh and sees the shadow of the other Alpha move away, behind the safety of the wall. "Give him a knife," he calls, and someone throws one in. "Let's at least make this interesting."

"Negan." It's Rick's voice, plaintive and quiet. "Please. He's not ready. He's not a _killer_."

Daryl's fingers flex. Somehow, he highly doubts that.

"I guess we'll see," Negan says coldly. Daryl looks to the side, trying to find the heat of Rick amongst the others, and Spencer grabs the knife and lunges for him. Daryl shies away, snarling, and Spencer barrels into him. Daryl howls when he feels the knife slip against his shoulder, splitting skin and making an unholy shriek as it hits the metal plate in his shoulder.

Daryl doesn't know what hits him, but he feels alight with it. It's instinct, his skin burning when the other Alpha touches him and it's not _his_ Alpha which means this Alpha will try and hurt him or kill him or force him to breed and any of those options is _death_. He opens his jaws and sinks them into Spencer's neck, ripping out a hunk of his neck and the Alpha howls, staggering back.

Daryl doesn't give him time to get a second wind. He lunges for the Alpha and slashes at him with his claws, ripping into his chest. It's not a fair fight and it's not a long one. He shreds Spencer's clothes, digs his claws into the Alpha's stomach until the Alpha screams in pain. It's a pretty sound, soothing enough to make Daryl purr.

Spencer's arms moves and Daryl's vision whites out in pain as he feels the knife penetrate his side, sinking deeply into his chest. His breathing stutters and he falls to the side onto his back, moaning in pain. Spencer scrambles up, sluggish with blood loss and with his wounds, and lands heavy on Daryl. His fangs sink around the metal plate in Daryl's shoulder and he shrieks, clawing at Spencer's face in an attempt to get the other Alpha off of him.

Spencer pulls away and Daryl surges to his feet. They circle each other, blood making little dots of black on the ground. The hollers and shouts of their audience is deafening. Everything _hurts_ , Daryl's head hurts and his hands are shaking from pain. He's dealt with pain before but this feels different, piercing. He shakes his head to try and clear it and Spencer lunges for him again.

" _Omega_ ," he hisses, and then Daryl feels a hand clamp around the back of his neck and he abruptly goes lax. His skin goes cold, his vision snapping back to normal and his fangs and claws retracting. He's breathing heavily and he hears the cries of the crowd go suddenly silent.

Spencer lets out a snarl of victor, covering Daryl's weak and unmoving body. His fingers tighten on his nape hard enough to hurt and Daryl whimpers, trembling finely under the touch. He can't _move_ , he can't bring himself to move.

"Negan!" Rick shouts, his strong voice piercing the silence. "Stop the fight!"

Negan doesn't. No one else moves in to help him. Daryl can feel Rick's anger and his fear coiling and mixing with his own until he thinks he might throw up. He starts to shudder. And then Spencer is at his neck again, breathing in his scent deeply. The Alpha growls and Daryl moans weakly when he feels Spencer's cock rutting against his ass through their clothes. Spencer's blood soaks his skin and wets the way and Daryl hates it.

Negan wouldn't let Spencer breed him. Daryl knows this, he has to know that and has to rely on that fact. As soon as Spencer's hand lets up on his neck Daryl can fight back. He just has to find a way to make him let go. He has to find a way to get his guard down.

The knife is next to him, forgotten on the ground. He can't make his hands move to grab at it. He has to fight without moving, without being able to use his claws and his fangs. There must be _something_ he can use.

Spencer breathes in deeply again, his exhale ragged and wet. Daryl bites his lip and, slowly, folds his arms so that he's on his elbows and knees. He hears Spencer give an Alpha-purr of pleasure, still rutting his cock mindlessly against Daryl's ass. Daryl lets out a sigh – this soft, needy thing, and arches up against Spencer's body.

He feels his body heat up with something other than anger and aggression. It's not lust, he hates that Spencer is touching him, but it's a good enough fallacy. His body clenches up, warm and wanting, and he lets out a little smirk of satisfaction when he starts to smell his pheromones. _Omega_.

_Something chemical in Alphas makes them weak._

Alphas _are_ weak. Spencer smells Daryl's slick, his scent, the pheromones he's forcing his body to put out. He knows when the other Alphas start to smell it, too, low growls of desire filling the air. Spencer lifts his head and snarls at their audience, defensive and protective of his apparent willing mate, and his hand loosens on Daryl's neck.

Daryl immediately grabs the knife and turns, plunging it into Spencer's throat. The Alpha's eyes go wide and blood spills from his mouth, dripping onto Daryl's neck and face, and then the Alpha goes limp with one last sputtering breath. Daryl snarls, his claws and his fangs and his heat vision returning, and he surges up and shoves Spencer onto his back and pulls the knife out, bringing it back down into the man's chest and face. He keeps stabbing until there's barely anything recognizable to the Alpha and then when he tires of that he throws the knife to one side and digs his claws into Spencer's chest, ripping his flesh from his ribs.

He's hungry, and he tucks his hand and jams it into Spencer's stomach, grabbing his heart from under his ribcage. He yanks it out and sinks his teeth into it, snarling as he does so. The stench of fear and blood is heady and as enticing as any fine food or expensive wine. He consumes the heart until there's nothing left to it but cartilage and then throws the rest away.

Someone approaches him and Daryl growls, hunched over the body of his kill. A hand reaches out, hesitating, and then touches his hair and the person kneels down. Daryl looks at him and blinks, his vision fading away when a new scent reaches him; something warm and soft and he blinks again and sees Rick there, kneeling beside him, his hand gently threading through Daryl's hair.

Rick looks away, exposing his throat, and Daryl growls and wants to lunge for him, to bite him and use the slick in his body and the fire in his blood to wring life from the Alpha brave enough to approach him, but he remains where he is, crouched over Spencer's body.

Rick's jaw is clenched when he stands and he looks over at Negan. The Alpha is positively glowing with pride, his smile overtaking his face.

"Satisfied?" Rick asks, his voice hard.

Negan laughs. The crowd around them is silent and amazed. "You've done alright by me, Rick," he says. His eyes land on Daryl, dark and red. Daryl shivers and tries not to think about the fact that Negan knows what his slick smells like now. "Go get him cleaned up."

Rick nods and stands. Daryl does as well, prepared to follow Rick back, but he hesitates. He looks back at Negan, still feeling like he's being tested and watched. He looks back to Rick, and Rick looks at him as well. He gives a slight shake of his head and Rick's eyes flash, but he nods.

Daryl leans back over Spencer's body and with strong hands he grabs the bottom of his ribs, hauling back and snapping it free with a grunt of effort. Parts of the spine come with it and Daryl snaps the sharp parts of the ribs away, before he grabs what he can of Spencer's spine and carries it over to Negan.

He looks at Negan and licks his lips, before raising it for the Alpha to see. "It's yours," he says, not even sure what he's showing but it feels right to do this. To share one's kill is a behavior only for trusted pack members and mates. Daryl will keep the rest of the ribs and share the meat on them with Rick, but he must also make an offering to Negan to show his apparent loyalty.

Negan smiles and takes the spine from Daryl, huffing a breath. "Damn, boy," he says. "You're gonna make the world start spinning again."

Daryl offers a smile, something promising so that he doesn't bare his teeth instead, and then he turns away and follows Rick out of the ring. The group part for them, shying away from Daryl as though being too close to him will get them all killed.

They have every right to be afraid of him. Daryl feels high off of the kill, and he's purring deeply in his chest as Rick leads him back to their room.  


	4. Chapter 4

As soon as the door closes behind them Daryl lets his purr grow stronger and he takes a hold of Rick's hand, forcing him to stop and turn back and Daryl plasters himself against the Alpha's chest, purring loudly and licking a bloody line up Rick's neck. Rick shivers, his hands clutching weakly at Daryl's arms as though unsure where else to go.

"These are yours," Daryl says, and holds out the mangled remains of Spencer's ribs, still wet with blood and thick with tender meat. Rick's eyes flash red because he _must_ understand what Daryl means when he offers them.

Daryl still smells like slick. He can feel it, on his thighs, his body burning hot. He holds the ribs with trembling hands and Rick takes one, rumbling in thanks. He brings it to his mouth and peels off a part of the meat and eats it and Daryl feels alight with satisfaction, seeing his Alpha share in his kill.

He drops the rest of them and pushes against Rick's chest again and the Alpha is trembling. "Daryl," he says, and there might be something else on his tongue, a demand for Daryl to stop or maybe a plea for him to keep going but Daryl doesn't know. He feels as though he can barely think.

"You came to me," Daryl says, and he doesn't recognize his voice; there's something low and thick with desire there and his chest and stomach feels warm and tight. He wants to bite Rick's neck and throw him to the ground and mount him, pull and press until Rick's knot is lodged tight and Daryl's body is soaked from the inside with the Alpha's seed, with his _life_. He wants to consume Rick. "You aren't afraid of me."

Rick lets out a weak laugh. His hands are shaking when one threads through Daryl's hair and the other presses against his hammering heart. "That's not true," Rick says.

"Then why did you take me away?" Daryl demands. He wants to see Rick's eyes but he can't make himself move from the Alpha's neck and shoulder, rumbling and rubbing his face there so that Rick's exposed skin is as dirty as his is. "I could have killed you but you knew I wouldn't. You have power over me, Rick."

"I -." Rick shivers, letting out a quiet groan when Daryl licks his exposed throat, a whine of supplication stuck behind his collarbones. Daryl can smell his desire – Rick can smell his slick, _has_ smelled it, and he said he'd never touched Daryl like that but he'd never said he didn't want to. Daryl _wants_ him to, he wants Rick's scent soaked into him.

Daryl pulls away with what feels like the effort of moving a mountain. His clothes are soaked with blood and his skin is dry and tacky with it. He pushes the tattered remains of his clothes to his feet and Rick's eyes go wide. When Daryl looks at him, his gaze is red and wanting. Daryl can see where his cock is bulging, pressing against the inside of his jeans.

He growls and moves away, animal and bare, to the corner of the room where there's a drain and the floor dips down a little so that water will run into the drain. There's a showerhead there and it turns on as he approaches it, motion-sensitive. The water is warm and beats heavily down on his shoulders and through his hair.

There's a working shower in here but Rick smells like he hasn't made use of it in days. Long before Daryl got here. Was he too feral, mad with grief over his lost mate, to think about it? Or did he not want to risk losing any of Daryl's scent while they were separated?

He turns to regard Rick and licks his lips. "Come here," he demands, and Rick makes a weak sound but moves to him like he was forcing himself to remain still. Like they're magnetized, ramming together when even an inch separates them. Rick doesn't take off his clothes so the water soaks into them, plastering to his chest and his legs as he stands under the spray with Daryl.

Daryl runs his hands up Rick's arms and Rick's eyes drop to his side where Spencer stabbed him. Rick growls, touching the wound lightly. It stings but it doesn't hurt and it's already healing but Daryl hisses all the same.

"I don't want to feel him on me anymore," Daryl says, and he grabs Rick's hand and runs it through his hair, closing his eyes when Rick's fingers tighten and take over, petting it away from his face as the water soaks it down. The water is black by the time it reaches the floor but it's steadily turning pink, and then it will be clear again.

"I hated seeing him touch you," Rick says, quietly like a confession, and Daryl opens his eyes again. Rick's fingers clench and he bares his teeth, showing his fangs. "I…fuck, Daryl. I was so scared. Scared Negan would let him…. Scared that _you'd_ let him…"

Daryl growls. "You think I would?" he asks.

Rick shakes his head. "I don't know how Omegas think," he says. "I just know…when an Alpha goes red, in their eyes, it's all instinct. No reason to think Omega gold works any different."

Daryl blinks. "Is that what they see?" he asks. "Glenn and Abraham, they saw my eyes and that's when they called me 'Omega'. Is it…?"

"Gold," Rick finishes with a nod. He's still petting through Daryl's hair, his other hand clenched tightly at his side as though to stop himself reaching out to touch more. Daryl wants Rick to touch him, to run his hands across his skin and mark every inch. He wonders if he reached out and guided Rick's hand, how much Rick would allow him to do before whatever was holding him back took over again.

"When that happens, I don't even see people anymore," Daryl says. "I just see heat. _Life_. And I just want to – I get so _hungry_ but sometimes it isn't for food." He lets out a frustrated sound. "I wish I could remember. This would all make so much more sense."

Rick lets out a quiet, pleading sound, like Daryl is angry with him and he's trying to beg for forgiveness. "It was the only way to give you a chance," he says.

"You don't get to decide that for me anymore."

"I'm your Alpha," Rick murmurs.

Daryl's eyes flash and he growls, twisting out of Rick's grip and walking away from the corner. His feet are slick on the floor and he hears the water shut off as Rick follows him. He can sense Rick's heat behind him when he turns around again. "Y'ain't _nothin'_ 'til you get the balls to admit it," he hisses.

Rick shakes his head with a low sigh. "Negan will kill me," he says, voice hard. "He'll kill me and then you'll…one way or another, neither of us win if I do that."

"So, you'll bite me," Daryl says, "you'll put fuckin' metal in me, you'll zap my brain until I can't remember who you are, 'til it drives us both crazy, and you'll let him do whatever the fuck he wants to me, because you're a _Goddamned coward._ "

"The only thing I care about is keeping you safe," Rick replies harshly. "Far as I'm concerned, any price is worth that."

"I don't think _I'm_ the one who needs protectin'," Daryl growls. "Seems like _you're_ the weak one. _Alphas_ are the weak ones." He smirks, baring his teeth, and advances on Rick. Rick's eyes widen and Daryl can smell his fear, but he doesn't shy away when Daryl walks right up to him and puts his teeth at Rick's neck.

Rick's heart is hammering but he doesn't flinch, not even when Daryl opens his mouth wide and edges his teeth along the tendon in Rick's neck. He reeks of fear, sour with it, and Daryl growls and licks along Rick's fluttering pulse instead until he feels the Alpha shiver and his scent gets sweet.

"I'm learnin', Rick," he whispers. His voice raises goose bumps on Rick's flesh and he can smell the Alpha reacting to it. He still has slick on him, warm in his body and ready. His body, it seems, is still very much on board with the idea of the breeding he'd tricked it into anticipating. And with Rick so close, his _Alpha_ who smells like warm meat and fresh air, it feels like his body is demanding nothing less than to be satisfied.

He laughs. "Look at you," he says, running a hand down Rick's heaving chest. "One touch from me has you shakin'. I don't believe you when you say you never touched me. You're not strong enough to resist me."

Rick growls and pushes him away, and then steps back and paces to the far wall. He whirls around and bares his teeth at Daryl. "I could make you _beg_ for me," Rick says. "I could bring you to your _knees_."

Daryl laughs again, haughty and proud. "Oh?" he says, mocking, and smirks when Rick growls at him again.

"You want me to prove it?" Rick demands. He looks small and vulnerable in his wet clothes, thin in comparison to Daryl, but there's something changing in his voice now. His eyes aren't red, not even a flicker in them, but Daryl feels something brushing along his consciousness, anticipatory and wanting. His mouth goes dry and suddenly it feels like Rick is taking up every spare atom of air.

Rick's eyes flash and he smirks and Daryl straightens up, taking a step back. This feeling isn't _wrong_ , exactly, but it's making his skin feel tight, like he's about to burst out of it. He takes another step back as Rick starts to advance on him and his breathing starts to get unsteady. Rick growls, Alpha-rumbling, and Daryl licks his lips and whines.

Rick approaches him and puts a hand in his hair and Daryl doesn't even think about lashing out. It feels like it does when someone touches the nape of his neck but Rick's hand isn't even close and it's still taking everything in him to remain standing.

Rick cocks his head to one side and Daryl looks up at him, shoulders curled in. Rick lifts his chin and Daryl's chest feels like it caves in. "On your knees," he demands, and Daryl drops to them in a moment. Rick lets his hair go and Daryl gasps as Rick circles him, eyes burning lines in Daryl's exposed skin. He runs his fingers through his hair and they're shaking hard and he can't _breathe_.

He tries to get to his feet but Rick growls and Daryl shrinks in on himself, whining softly in desperate supplication. Rick's anger slides along his skin like nails, lighting him up, and his head _aches_ because his Alpha is _angry_ with him and Daryl feels tears come to his eyes. They're itching like they do when he goes into his heat vision but his vision isn't changing.

Rick crouches down in front of him and curls a hand under his chin, forcing him upright. Rick's eyes aren't red and Daryl knows his aren't gold but something is _affecting_ him. Something Rick is doing has brought him to his knees and he doesn't know what.

Rick blinks and he cocks his head to one side, rumbling softly in his chest. It sounds like forgiveness and Daryl sobs, collapsing against Rick and Rick allows him to, wrapping his arms tightly around Daryl's shoulders and stroking a hand through his hair.

"It's called the Alpha Voice," Rick says after a quiet moment, when Daryl feels like he can breathe again. He feels his Alpha's forgiveness and comfort seeping into him like water and he heaves in another shuddery breath. "It's powerful, and it affects everyone but Omegas in particular. A bonded Omega will only react to the voice of his Alpha."

Daryl sucks in another breath and pulls away. Rick's hands cup his face and he sighs, wiping the tears from Daryl's cheeks. "I'm sorry," he says. "I shouldn't have lost control like that. But _that's_ what Negan wants. Can you imagine if he had an army of Omegas like you, submissive only to his will?"

The thought makes Daryl shudder and he shakes his head. "We have to get out of here," he says. He can't let go of Rick and clings to him desperately, whimpering low in his throat.

Rick sighs and holds him even tighter. "I'm sorry," he whispers, pressing a kiss to Daryl's head. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I know it fucks people up and I got angry and did it anyway."

"Startin' to think I'm a lot more of a pain in the ass than even I thought," Daryl mutters, earning a quiet, strained laugh from Rick.

Daryl whines. "I…I need -. I don't know what I need. Just, _please_." He tugs at Rick's clothes and Rick stands up. Daryl lets out a rough, needy moan and tries to follow but he can't make his legs move. He's still pinned to the floor, struck there by Rick's will, and isn't that a terrifying thought? He thinks of what might have happened if Negan had found him first, if Rick hadn't bonded to him, what Daryl might have been forced to do.

"I know," Rick says, his voice quiet, and Daryl looks up as Rick sheds his clothes. He's pale, paler than the flashes of Daryl's memory says he should be, and he's so thin and frail-looking after weeks of sub-par food. Still, Daryl knows how strong he is now. He can feel Rick's will tugging at the back of his head, coercing him over to their nest of blankets and he rubs against them, desperate for the scent and the heat of his Alpha.

Rick covers him like he did the night before, his chest to Daryl's back and Daryl whines, grabbing Rick's hands and threading their fingers together so that Rick is forced to plaster every inch of skin he can against Daryl's. He's chill from the water but warming up quickly and Daryl rolls and moves so that they're nestled into the blankets as much as he's able to get them.

He can feel Rick's mouth at his nape and he shivers. "Did you ever use the Alpha Voice on me before?" he asks, unsure if Rick will even be honest with him since he has the advantage, here, and the complete power within him to lie.

Rick sighs, his fingers tightening in Daryl's, thumbs rubbing over his wrists. "Yes," he confesses. "When you were in Heat. It was the only way to make sure I didn't do anything stupid. I ordered you to stay on your table and not to move and you obeyed me. It…didn't help. I think it makes it worse. I think you feel whatever I'm feeling when I do it and you would _scream_."

Daryl feels Rick shudder and lets out a whine. He can feel Rick's cock against his ass, still hard because Rick's Alpha brain can still smell his slick and knows there's a willing, ripe Omega pinned underneath him. He spreads his legs out a little and sighs when he feels Rick's cockhead against his hole, sliding through the slick. He's not actively leaking anymore but he's sure Rick could work his way in if he wanted to.

Daryl whimpers when Rick lets out a growl, opening his mouth and putting his teeth to Daryl's neck. "I bit you, then," Rick whispers and Daryl lets out another rough, wanting sound. "I had to. I want you so badly I think I might die."

"I'm here now," Daryl replies. "Take me."

Rick's fingers tighten and the Alpha makes this desperate, heavy sound and Daryl whimpers again when he feels Rick's cockhead pressing against his hole. He _wants_ it, and if he wasn't sure Rick would move away if he tried he would move his hips back and try and force Rick's cock to slide into him.

"I can't get you pregnant," Rick says shakily. His fingers are squeezing Daryl's so tightly they're starting to hurt and turning white. "Negan will kill us."

"He won't risk the baby," Daryl replies. He spreads his legs out a little more and arches up as best he can and Rick growls in warning, teeth still at his neck. "Rick, _please_."

Rick snarls and frees one hand from Daryl's and before Daryl can whine he feels Rick's hand slide under his body and wrap around his cock. It's leaking and hard and Daryl moans, head dropping down so that his forehead meshes against the blankets, pleasure skittering down his spine at Rick's touch.

He works his hips forward and back in little rabbit thrusts and gasps when he feels Rick's cock rutting against him as well. It's different, _better_ than it felt with Spencer. Daryl's body is lighting up but it feels good, having his Alpha's scent and weight pressing over him and pinning him down. _This is what it should be._

"Don't move," Rick growls into his ear, his hand tightening and quickening on Daryl's cock as the Omega starts to tremble. "I won't make you, promise I won't, but I can't – I can't fuck you. You have to understand -."

"I _don't_ understand," Daryl replies with a whine. His free hand fists in the blankets and yank down, tearing one at the seam with a loud sound. He moans, clenching his eyes shut, teeth gritted and bared.

Rick makes a sad sound, but his grip never falters on Daryl's cock. He's using Daryl to bear his weight and Daryl whines, writhing under Rick as Rick's hand keeps moving. It doesn't feel like enough, he needs something _inside him_ , need his Alpha to fuck and claim him and soak his insides and fill him up but he's not going to get it and he thinks he might just go inside.

"Rick, _please_ ," he begs, breathless and wild. "I don't _understand_."

"I know," Rick says. Daryl feels him press a kiss to Daryl's nape and shivers at the tingle of arousal and desire that the action causes. "I know. I love you." And then Daryl gasps as Rick opens his mouth wide and winks his teeth into Daryl's nape. His whole body goes lax but in a different way than if someone were to just touch him there. He howls, every muscle in his body flooding with heat and he feels liquified from the inside. There's slick leaking out of his hole again and his cock twitches and spills onto Rick's hand and the blankets. He groans, tensing and trembling finely as Rick lets go of his nape and licks over the red mark.

Then, he pulls away and Daryl looks over his shoulder to see Rick's hand going to his own cock, soaked with Daryl's come. Rick bites his lip and his free hand flies to Daryl's shoulder and his nails grip tight. His fangs are showing and Daryl whines, some instinct in him telling him to lay down and bare his nape so that his Alpha can see the mark he left there, and he lifts his hips against Rick's weight and Rick growls and Daryl closes his eyes as he feels Rick's come spurt out, thick and warm on his lower back and over his ass.

Rick collapses over him, rubbing his dirty hand against the blankets before he takes hold of Daryl's neck, fingers wrapping around his throat from the front and hauling him up so that Daryl can turn his head and Rick can kiss him. Rick's fangs nip at his lower lip and Daryl whimpers, shivering, body still running hot and desperate at being denied a knot. He doesn't even know what that will feel like but he _wants_ it, like some deep itch he won't be able to scratch without his Alpha.

When they pull away it's simply because they run out of air and Rick shoves him down onto his stomach again immediately, purring loudly as he rubs his cheek against Daryl's damp hair and licks over the nape of his neck and his shoulders. Daryl shivers at each touch, goose bumps breaking out along his arms and down his spine whenever he feels Rick exhale.

"Why are you doing this?" he finally asks.

Rick lifts his head.

"You can't hold yourself back forever."

Rick nods, pressing his lips together. "Not forever," he says. He leans down and kisses Daryl's red cheek and pets a hand through his hair. "When we're free, and when we're safe. I promise."

Daryl hums, closing his eyes as Rick starts to purr again. He can't help making his own rumble in answer, feeling it vibrate between their skin where they're pressed together. Rick's is a little lower than his, harmonious as the two of them drift off to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daryl is a sneaky sneak.  
> Also I'm belatedly realizing that this fic is basically a self-indulgent excuse to write breeding kink and there's A LOT OF IT and more to come soooooooooooo yeah.

Daryl moans, his arms and thighs aching as he arches up against Rick, rutting desperately. His cock grinds against Rick's stomach and he can feel the Alpha's precome slicking the way, sweat making them slide together like mindless beasts.

Rick kisses him, thirsty and desperate, his hands tight in Daryl's fingers to stop the Omega scratching down his back. "You can't leave marks," he'd said, "or Negan will know." But at this point Daryl doesn't give a flying fuck what Negan knows or doesn't know. He has no fear in his heart of the other Alpha – he knows he could rip Negan to shreds if he wanted to. Alphas are afraid of people like him, even Alphas like Rick and Negan.

Rick parts from the kiss and bites at his jaw and Daryl whimpers, tilting his head to one side to bare his throat for Rick's mouth. The Alpha lets out a pleased rumble that Daryl feels deep in his stomach and he wraps his legs around Rick's back, urging him on. He wants Rick _inside_ him, wants to feel his Alpha claiming him from the inside out but he knows he won't get it.

He moans again, this soft and shuddery thing, when Rick bites his neck. It's shallow and gentle, not hard enough to leave a mark, and Daryl's body aches with the need to feel it. He wasn't it _rougher_. He wants bruises on his skin in the shape of Rick's hands, he wants the marks of his Alpha's teeth in his neck. He wants Rick's _knot_ , wants to feel his cock fucking and splitting Daryl open and filling him up.

He wonders, idly, if Omegas have a Voice as well, if he could figure out how to use it to get what he wants. He doesn't know if he can and Rick is a strong Alpha, able to resist him even in the wildest throes of Heat. He _aches_.

"Rick, _please_ ," he begs, squeezing his fingers between Rick's hard enough to hurt. Rick grits his teeth, cock twitching against Daryl's stomach. _"Please_ , I need – I need _somethin'_."

His slick has stained and soaked the blankets beneath them and the air reeks of it in a way that Daryl is sure won't go away any time soon. If Negan were to come into the room later that day he'd smell it, he'd smell Rick on Daryl. There's no way to hide what they're doing. How did they do it before?

Rick growls and rears up, before he shoves Daryl's hands above his head and wraps his fingers in a strong grip around both of Daryl's wrists. Daryl purrs, the Omega part of him pleased that his Alpha is so strong despite his thin frame. Rick's eyes are wholly red, glazed with lust. He leans down and kisses Daryl until Daryl arches up with a pleading whine.

Rick's hand slides down Daryl's red and sweaty chest, and then further down, skirting his hard cock and sliding between his legs instead. His hand flattens on Daryl's thigh and then he growls and leans back, letting go.

"On your knees," he demands. It's not the Alpha Voice but it's an order Daryl feels down to his bones. He whimpers and hurries to obey. Instinct demands he go to his elbows and knees, flattening himself out like he did for Spencer, his ass in the air and ready to take whatever his Alpha gives him.

He hears Rick let out a shuddering breath and gasps, head dropping down and forward when he feels Rick's hands spread out along his ass, parting him to reveal his slick, red hole. Rick growls lowly, predatory and fine, and then Daryl whines when he feels one finger circle his wet rim.

"Please," he begs with no air. "Please, _please_ , put it in. _Please_."

"Show me," Rick says. "Show me how much you want it."

Daryl doesn't know how else he could possibly do that. He's so slick and ready he's sure Rick could slide three fingers in there with no problem. His slick is running down his thighs, turning them pink and tender. He bows his back and stretches his arms out above his head and hears Rick give a quiet, weak moan.

"That's it," Rick says, rubbing the pad of his finger over Daryl's hole. "Like this, if I fucked you, I'd get you pregnant instantly. It's the perfect angle to mount you and breed you. But you knew that, didn't you?"

Daryl whimpers and runs his hands through his hair. He's shaking finely, desperate for _something_. His body is burning up and every cell runs hotter at Rick's words – but more than that, he can _feel_ how much Rick wants him. Maybe it's the bond or maybe it's just the scent of Rick but Daryl can smell Rick's arousal and feel it like his own, pulsing heavily in his chest a little off-time to his heartbeat.

"Stay still," Rick commands breathlessly and Daryl shivers, trying his best to stay in one place as he feels one of Rick's fingers push against his hole. It slides in easily, as easy as anything, and Daryl moans, his cock twitching and leaking along with the rest of him out onto the blankets. He can feel new slick gushing around Rick's finger, soaking the Alpha's hand. He's so wet and ready he thinks he might die.

"Rick, _Alpha_ ," Daryl groans, arching his hips back to get Rick's finger deeper inside of him. Rick growls but allows it, his other hand falling to Daryl's hip to keep him still as he sinks his finger in and twists it to make Daryl howl.

"I've imagined so many times what it would be like to mount you," Rick says. He moves so that his thighs are outside of Daryl's, nudging them in, and then forces his cock between Daryl's thighs. They're slick, a promise of tightness his body will offer and Daryl bites his lip hard enough to hurt and whines as Rick fucks between them slowly. The finger inside of him is satisfying _something_ , that little itch that had felt so overwhelming. It's not enough but it's a start, and then Rick pulls it out and sinks two back in and Daryl moans. "How you'd feel under me, the sounds you'd make… I'd go days without sleep because all I could dream about was you."

Daryl lets out a rough, garbled cry of Rick's name, fisting his hands in his hair and tugging it up, baring his nape. He feels Rick growl. The Alpha's cock is nudging against the bottom of his where Rick is fucking between his thighs and his thighs are tingling, sensitive and raw. Rick curls his fingers and Daryl jolts when he feels _something_ light up inside of him.

Rick snarls in victory, letting go of Daryl's hip and bracing his hand on Daryl's nape instead so that Daryl is forced to go abruptly lax. He can't speak, can only let out sweet little whines, and he can't even move except to remain steady as Rick rubs against that spot inside of him mercilessly.

"When we're free," Rick growls, "I'm going to fuck you, and breed you, until there's more come in you than slick." Daryl moans, shuddering underneath his Alpha's powerful grip. Rick's pace is growing faster, his fingers rougher and Daryl feels like he's on fire. "Gonna spend whole days knotted in you, I promise."

Daryl moans again, loudly, the words sending hot flares of need up his spine. He wants to beg but can't make his mouth move, can't force his tongue to form the words. He gasps, breathless and wanton and altogether helpless as Rick continues to talk to and touch him.

"Gonna give you what you want," Rick whispers, like a confession. "Gonna give you everything, Daryl – _fuck_ , _my Daryl_ -."

He goes still abruptly and Daryl whimpers when he feels Rick start to come, spurting thickly between his thighs and against the base of his cock. Rick's fingers drive against that spot inside of him and don't back off, like he has a personal vendetta against that sensitive nub, and Daryl moans weakly.

Rick lets go of his nape and hauls him to his hands and knees by his hair and Daryl whines at the rough treatment, a purr stuck in his throat as Rick wraps a hand around the front of his neck and leans over him, edging his teeth against Daryl's shoulder and rubbing his softening cock against Daryl's ass.

Daryl reaches back with one hand and wraps a hand around his cock as Rick's fingers continue to move inside of him. It doesn't take him long after that to come with a weak sound, shoulders curling in and neck pressed tight to Rick's palm. He whimpers, sensitive and overwhelmed, and Rick slowly pulls his fingers out when Daryl's body stops clenching.

"My Daryl," Rick whispers, nuzzling him and purring loudly as Daryl gasps and trembles in his hold. "I love you."

Daryl shakes and turns his head, rubbing his forehead against Rick's sweaty neck as the Alpha covers him again, hiding him from the sight of some imaginary onlooker, and lets the rhythm of his Alpha's heartbeat conduct his breaths as he claws himself back from the freefall.

 

 

They shower and that does a little to help the smell but there's no denying the scent of a well-slicked Omega and aroused Alpha in the room. Rick puts his clothes back on, some inner clock in him sensing that they'll be visited soon. Daryl has no clothes he wishes to go back into so he contents himself with being wrapped up in a blanket as the doors open and Negan steps inside.

Negan's eyes flash red and he takes in a breath. His eyes go to Rick immediately and Daryl growls, instinctively tense at the sight of the Alpha. Negan's eyes then go to the pile of ribs, discarded in one corner, and he smirks.

He holds out a hand. "Daryl," he calls. Daryl wants to hiss at him because he's not a fucking _dog_ , but he understands that there's a charade he must keep up here. He pushes himself to his feet, blanket draped loosely around his shoulders and hanging down to his thighs, and walks over until he can put his cheek in Negan's palm.

Negan lets out a happy Alpha-rumble and brushes a hand through his damp hair. "That's my boy," he says proudly, before looking over to Rick. "Be seein' you."

Rick nods, apparently resigned and used to being left in the room. Daryl frowns because from what he understands Rick was only quarantined here because he went crazy after Daryl left, but Daryl's back now so shouldn't he have the freedom to wander around Eden on his own?

There's so much that Daryl doesn't understand or remember and he _wants_ to and it _hurts_ his head whenever he tries to think about it.

Negan grins and gives Rick a little salute before he leads Daryl out of the room. Daryl forces himself not to look back at Rick but he feels Rick's anxiety and his anger sliding down his spine as the door closes. His vision goes sharp for the briefest of moments and his head feels weird, like it's too crowded.

Negan leads him in silence until they're out in the courtyard again. A woman comes up to them with clothes and hands them to Negan, who thanks her with a kiss and a flirty wink before she leaves. Then he turns to Daryl.

"Put these on," he says, and Daryl looks at them. Then he looks around. There are Alphas and women out here, going about their day before they realize who Negan is standing with and stop and stare. Daryl's cheeks turn pink and he glares back at the clothes, realizing Negan fully intends for him to strip and redress himself out in the open.

He drops the blanket with a defiant look and takes the clothes. They're old, loose-fitting sweatpants and a too-large long-sleeved shirt but they're warm and don't smell of any offending Alpha. Daryl can't help letting out a little purr, rubbing his cheek against the soft, warm sleeve.

Negan chuckles. "You Omegas like soft things, don't you?" he asks.

Daryl blinks at him. "Doesn't everyone?" he replies.

"Not like you do," Negan says warmly. "Come here."

He leads Daryl back through another door. This hallway is not concrete like the other one but has a carpeted floor and lights on the walls. Daryl squints, following close behind as he becomes aware of the scent of fresh, cooking meat. His stomach rumbles but feels sour because they have _cooked_ meat here but they've only been feeding him and Rick raw food. Maybe Omegas only eat raw. He hates not knowing even these simple things about his own species.

Negan leads Daryl to a room that's furnished with a large dining table. There are candles on it, lit and white, and two plates of food. Daryl's mouth waters when he sees steak and fresh, crunchy-looking lettuce and cucumbers on each plate. Negan gestures for him to take a seat at the side of the table and Daryl hesitates. It will put his back to the door.

He picks up the plate and goes around the table so that he can sit with his back to the wall and sets it down at Negan's left side. Negan laughs but doesn't comment as he takes his seat at the head, and Daryl curls up in his chair. It's a comfortable chair with arms cushioned with soft purple foam and darkly shining wood.

There are steak knives on the table. Daryl wonders if he would be able to sneak one out to give to Rick.

"Eat," Negan encourages, before slicing into his own steak. Daryl's stomach rumbles and he reaches out, taking the meat in his hands and bringing it to his mouth. His fangs slice into the steak and he gives a soft moan of appreciation, closing his eyes. It's raw, barely cooked but warm, and he eats readily.

When he opens his eyes, licking his fingers clean, he finds Negan watching him. "What a curious little thing you are," he murmurs, almost to himself, and Daryl swallows and sits a little straighter. He picks at a slice of cucumber and Negan shrugs, returning his attention to his steak. "How have you been enjoying your stay here so far?"

Daryl blinks at him and shrugs. "Better than the streets," he says, only vaguely sure that that's true. At least Rick is here.

"Do you remember leaving us?" Negan asks. The question is politely said but Daryl can feel the edge in it.

He shakes his head. "No," he says, keeping his voice quiet and high, his eyes lowered like he knows on some level Alphas like Negan need to see. He feels it with the same wavering certainty that he had felt sharing his kill with Negan. There are some instincts, apparently, that even his brain still understands. "The first thing I remember is Glenn and Abraham finding me."

Negan hums, his eyes flickering red. "Has Rick told you why you're here?"

Daryl shakes his head again.

"Well…" Negan sits back, grabbing a glass of water from the side of his plate and taking a sip. Daryl's mouth goes dry. The only liquid he's had has been juice from his meat and Rick's sweat and he's suddenly very thirsty. There's no water glass for him and he wonders if Negan intends to see if he'll beg for some. "You see, long ago, before your time or mine, Alphas and Omegas and women all lived together."

Daryl nods, taking another slice of cucumber.

"But then…well, then the world went to shit," Negan finishes with a shake of his head. "And I mean _real_ shit. Started in good ol' sunny California, if I remember correctly. An Alpha's Omega was murdered, he went feral, started Ruttin'. You know what that means?"

Something flickers in Daryl's memory. Images of red eyes and huge, snarling mouths, claws ripping at the nearest pieces of flesh it could find. He frowns and shakes his head again.

"When an Alpha Ruts, it's kinda like that gorgeous stunt you pulled with Spencer," Negan say, grinning around his water glass. "Problem is there's no comin' out of it for Alphas. And they can do a _lot_ of damage when they're like that. One Rut prompted an Omega response, lot of killin's and fightin', more Alphas got scared and snapped too, it escalated from there."

"So you killed all of us," Daryl says.

Negan shrugs. "Only bonded Alphas Rut," he says. "Kill the Omegas, kill the bonds, stop the problem. We got women to make babies, so why we need men doin' that too?"

Daryl starts to feel cold gathering up in the base of his spine. He licks his lips. "Rick told me about bonding," he says. Negan's eyes flash, calculating and sharp on Daryl's face. "He said if I bond with anyone and they die, that's it for me. And Glenn said if I'm bonded and I leave again, I'll die. How does…how does that even _work_?"

Negan laughs. "Fucked if I know, son," he says. "Fucked if anyone here knows what a bond feels like anymore."

"Why am I alive, then?" Daryl asks, shifting in place on his chair. "Why keep me at all, why not just kill me?"

Negan's eyes glow when he smiles. "You think I'm dumbass enough to think Rick didn't tell you that?"

Daryl swallows, and shakes his head. He looks away, baring his neck in a deliberate move even though he hates it, hates how he feels Negan's eyes drop to his throat or hears the Alpha's quiet rumble.

"I'll kill for you," Daryl murmurs.

Negan smiles. "I know."

"I'll…I'll breed for you, too, if that's what you want." Daryl's eyes move to one side along the edge of the table and he curls up on himself, faking the shyness and coyness and hopes it covers up the feeling of his revulsion at talking about this kind of thing. It doesn't feel as good as it does with Rick, not even close. His cheeks turn pink and he looks at Negan from the corner of his eye, head ducked low in respect and submission. "I think that's what you want."

Negan rumbles quietly and reaches out to pet a hand through Daryl's hair and it takes everything in Daryl to lean into the touch instead of shying away. "That is what I want," Negan says quietly.

"Then I will," Daryl says. He swallows and lifts his eyes, trembling with the effort that it's taking to keep up the pretense of this shy, pretty thing, so willing in Negan's arms. His stomach is turning the meat sour. "But…"

Negan raises an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"But it can't just be any Alpha," Daryl says. Negan leans back, blinking at him. Daryl's mind is racing. "Alphas that are _weak_ don't deserve a bloodline."

Negan chuckles, shaking his head. "Sure," he says, his tone thick with amusement.

"We should have a…contest," Daryl adds. "A fight. Or a hunt."

Negan looks at him again, his eyes almost glowing with excitement at the idea. "I…like the way you think, boy," he says, proud and purring, and Daryl forces a shy smile, ducking his head as though blushing under the Alpha's praise. "Did you have anything specific in mind?"

Daryl shakes his head. "You can choose the contestants," he says. "The strongest, or the smartest – whatever you want of me. And then…whatever they have to do, to prove themselves." Then he frowns as though considering. "Or you could claim me yourself. You're obviously the strongest Alpha in Eden."

Negan laughs, shaking his head. "You've got a pretty mouth, Daryl, and an even nicer tongue, but if you know anything about Alphas you know that won't work." Daryl bites his lower lip to hide his smirk because he's beginning to think he knows _everything_ about Alphas. "A competition though… I like it."

He stands and Daryl scrambles to his feet, going over and putting his cheek in Negan's palm when it's offered to him. He lets out a purr that feels forced and strained when Negan wraps a hand in his hair and clamps it over the nape of his neck, leaving him lax and trusting in the Alpha's awful hold.

"Let's get you back," Negan says. "You'll need to be well rested for what's comin'."

 


	6. Chapter 6

"What is the sweet holy Hell were you _thinking_?"

Daryl shrugs, picking absently at one of Spencer's ribs as he watches Rick pace and growl at him. The Alpha is angry, his eyes burning red, and he lifts his upper lip and bares his teeth at Daryl when the Omega doesn't give him any more of an answer.

"What?" he demands when Rick growls at him again. "It's simple, ain't it? Negan comes up with something that makes Alphas prove themselves if they wanna fuck me, I kill them all and call them 'unworthy' or some shit, decimate his force, and then we can break out and run away."

"Daryl, I know you're not that stupid," Rick hisses, shaking his head. " _Anything_ Negan comes up with will be rigged so that he's the victor."

"Even better," Daryl says. "I'll rip his throat out."

"You don't understand," Rick whispers, shaking his head.

"Whose fault is that?"

Rick stops pacing abruptly, turning to look at him, before he strides over and kneels in front of Daryl. He pulls Spencer's bones away from Daryl and Daryl lets out a half-hearted growl, before he raises his eyes to meet Rick's.

"What do you think he's gonna do when he smells me on you?" Rick asks quietly, demanding. "How far you willin' to go to convince him?"

Daryl's eyes narrow. "I can fake slick," he says. "I can fake whatever I damn well please. He won't get close enough for that." He cocks his head to one side. "If you're so fuckin' _concerned_ about it why don't you breed me your damn self and call it a day?"

"I can't just -." Rick shakes his head and pushes himself to his feet with a low growl of irritation. He runs his hands through his hair and turns back to look at Daryl and Daryl watches him impassively. "You can't get pregnant, Daryl. Not by anyone but me."

"Your point?"

"My _point_ ," Rick hisses, "is that you're bonded to _me_. And you can't _fake_ that."

Daryl frowns. He's starting to think that there's more to what Rick is saying than he's putting into words. Maybe he doesn't have the right ones. His fingers toy idly with the sleeve of the soft shirt Negan gave him and he raises it to his cheek, rubbing his face against it absently.

"Daryl," Rick says, deflating abruptly and going back to his knees in front of the Omega. He reaches out and takes Daryl's wrist and brings his knuckles to his lips. "Daryl, please, I'm begging you to reconsider. To call off whatever Negan plans to do."

"Do you have any better ideas?" Daryl asks, already shaking his head.

Rick licks his lips and whines, bowing his head, Daryl's hand still pressed to his mouth. "No," he admits. "Negan won't fall for what I did a second time."

"Why won't they let you outta here?" Daryl asks, reminded of the question that had been weighing on him since Negan had led him to dinner. "They're keeping you in here, starvin' ya, it's almost like they want you to die."

Rick lifts his eyes, and then his gaze skirts away, and understanding clicks into Daryl's brain like an interlocking puzzle piece.

"Oh," he says.

Rick winces. "…I don't know."

"He _knows_ , Rick," Daryl says. "He knows that you and I are bonded, at least in some way. He _has_ to know what we're doing in here. At least a part of it. If you die, I can still breed. If you die, I'm still useful. He doesn't give a shit about you. He'll probably kill you whether or not this thing happens. The _only_ thing you can do right now is fuck me and breed me up."

Rick shakes his head again, pushing himself to his feet. "I can't," he says, looking away.

Daryl lets out a quiet, plaintive noise – one he feels in the back of his throat and rumbles in his vocal cords. Rick's eyes snap to him, wide and red, and Daryl shifts so that he's crawling over to the Alpha, and slowly pushes himself to his feet, his hands using Rick's body as places to brace his weight until he's standing.

"Why are you fighting this?" he asks, petting a hand down Rick's chest. He presses his face against the Alpha's neck and licks over the exposed skin, earning a shiver from Rick. He can smell the Alpha's scent thickening, growing heady and the air between them gets warm. With proper clothes Daryl is warm enough in the room without Rick's body heat and the blankets so when he's wrapped up tight with the Alpha it turns blistering. "I'm here, I want it."

" _Daryl_ ," Rick whispers, his hands coming up to gently wrap around Daryl's biceps. He's shaking, his heartbeat flying under Daryl's hand. "Please. Stop."

Daryl growls. "You gonna use the Alpha Voice on me again?"

"I will if I have to."

Daryl snarls and pushes Rick away from him. "Fuck you," he hisses, baring his teeth. His vision is starting to go red with anger and he turns away and stalks towards the claw-marked door. He raises his fist against it and bangs it against the door four times. "Open up!" he yells.

"Daryl, what are you -?"

The door opens to reveal the beady-eyed man Daryl remembers seeing before when he was first brought in. He growls at the Alpha. "I wanna go outside," he says.

The man regards him with wide eyes. "I have to – make sure Negan's okay with it."

"I'll wait," Daryl says sharply, pleased when the Alpha's heat surges up a little in fear, before the door closes and he hears the Alpha scurrying away. Rick approaches him and Daryl turns to him and snarls. "Touch me and I'll fuckin' end you."

It's an empty threat, Rick must know that, but he backs off anyway with a plaintive sound. "Daryl, please," he says quietly.

The door opens again to reveal Negan with the other Alpha. Negan grins at Daryl and Daryl forces his growl to come out as a pleased rumble, stepping forward and putting his cheek in Negan's outstretched palm. "I wanna go outside," he says, trying to make his voice as sweet and high as possible. "Can I?"

"Of course, darlin', long as you stick with me," Negan says, and Daryl smiles and nods. He feels Rick's anger clouding the back of his head as the door shuts behind them and Negan leads the way down the hallway, the other Alpha bringing up the rear. "Gettin' tired of your roommate?"

Daryl shrugs. "He talks a lot," he says, and Negan laughs.

"Funny, Rick was one of the stronger silent types before you came along," he says brightly, and Daryl lets out a rumble in answer. "Think it's the hopeless romantic in him. Some Alphas see Omegas and used to just _melt_ , or so I'm told."

"Romance is overrated," Daryl says, only vaguely aware of what something like _romance_ would even entail. He doesn't want anything special, just for his Alpha to fucking _want_ him and be with him like every instinct in him is screaming that he do. He doesn't understand – doesn't Rick feel the bond as well, that insatiable pull telling him to slick his skin with his mate's sweat and bury himself inside of Daryl, just as Daryl's instincts demand he kneel and spread for his Alpha and let himself be mounted?

Negan laughs. "You got that right," he says, and pushes open the second door into the main area. There are people milling around just as before and they stop to stare at Daryl as he emerges into the sunlight, squinting at the harshness of it and raising a hand to shield his eyes. "Anything in particular you wanted to see?"

Daryl shakes his head. "Just needed the air," he says.

"Well, stay in this area where I can keep an eye on ya. Can't trust Alphas most of the time, y'know."

"I'll kill anyone that touches me," Daryl replies lightly, and walks out towards the area where he had killed Spencer before to the sound of Negan's laughter. There's still a dark stain of blood there although the body has been removed, and an Alpha bent over the stain scrubbing at the cement harshly.

Daryl takes a deep breath, recognizing the man's scent as Glenn as he approaches. Glenn looks up when Daryl's shadow falls across him and his eyes widen and he scrambles back, almost knocking over his bucket of water.

"Shit," he hisses, wincing and moving in an awkward crab motion before he gets to his feet. Daryl watches him without expression, head cocked to one side. "Shit, I, ah, I'll go. Sorry."

Daryl shakes his head. "Can I help?" he asks. "I made the mess, after all."

Glenn looks at him with wide eyes, before his gaze moves to somewhere over Daryl's shoulder. He presses his lips together and nods and hands Daryl the haphazard mess of rubber-band wrapped cloth he had been using to wipe up the mess, and grabs a second from the bucket. He and Daryl kneel at opposite ends of the considerable smear of blood and get to work.

The work is soothing, and Daryl feels warm with pride over the obvious, visceral evidence of his kill. His kill that he shared with his Alpha, and Rick had eaten from it. The reminder of Rick darkens his mood again and he scrubs at the cement with a vengeance.

After a while he becomes aware of Glenn staring at him, and raises his eyes to meet the Alpha's. Glenn swallows and ducks his head, a fine tremor of nervousness turning his scent saccharine. "You got a mate, Glenn?" Daryl asks.

Glenn licks his lips and nods. "Pups?" Daryl asks again.

"One on the way," Glenn replies with a small smile. "A boy, we think."

Daryl smiles. "Is Rick the only doctor in this place?" he asks.

Glenn shakes his head. "Rick ain't a doctor," he says, before he shrugs. "But I guess. Our old one died 'bout a year back, Rick stepped up 'cause he knew most about anatomy and shit. He, ah, used to be somethin'…a lawman, or whatever.  I guess he had to have _some_ medical knowledge."

Daryl nods, considering that. "But he's the only one?" he asks, and Glenn nods again. "And he's been in there for three months…so your wife's been without a doctor for that long?"

Glenn frowns, worrying his lower lip. "Yeah," he says slowly, like it's a thought that has also been weighing on his mind. "Yeah, a few months back somethin' in Rick just…snapped. There were stories, but no one really knew why." His eyes flash up to Daryl and then back down. "Guess it's obvious now."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…well, you gotta be mated to someone," Glenn says. "And only bonded Alphas go crazy like that, and if Negan says you've been gone that long…the timeline kinda matches up." Glenn shrugs one shoulder, and then his eyes go wide. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to overstep or assume or anythin'."

"No," Daryl says, and then looks over his shoulder. Negan is conversing with a group of women, grinning and winking at two of them dressed in tight black dresses. One is a dainty thing, small and blonde and worrying absently at her hair, the other a taller brunette with an amused smile and her arms folded under her chest to show off her cleavage. "You're not oversteppin'."

Glenn licks his lips. "So you and Rick…?"

Daryl shakes his head. "I don't know," he replies. "I don't remember…much of anythin', before you and Abraham brought me here. I was hopin' my memories would come back soon but they haven't yet. It's…" He squeezes his bloody rags and goes back to scrubbing. "Frustratin'."

"I bet," Glenn says, pressing his lips together. "No one knew we had an Omega here. _No one_."

"Yeah, kinda figured that part."

"I'm sorry," Glenn says. "I'm so sorry I brought you back. I thought Negan would do the right thing and try and find your Alpha for you. I didn't realize…"

"Rick doesn't think he knows," Daryl says, lifting his eyes. "But you figured it out. You some kinda genius, or is Rick just that stupid?"

Glenn winces. "Maybe it's wishful thinking," he says. "I mean, if you are bonded, it'll become too obvious to ignore eventually. If you're not…"

"What do you mean, 'too obvious to ignore'?"

Glenn blinks at him, before he frowns. "Well…I don't really know," he admits. "My mom used to talk about this Alpha-Omega couple down the road from us when I was growing up, and she used to say that they were one person at times. They always knew where the other one was. They could _feel_ things. And of course there's the Omega Voice."

Daryl pauses in his cleaning, looking up. "Omega Voice?" he asks.

Glenn nods. "The Omega equivalent of the Alpha Voice. Only bonded Omegas get them. Alphas have Voices from the time they're, I think it's like sixteen or something. But Omegas…"

"What does it do?" Daryl asks breathlessly. This is more information that Rick has ever shared with him and he's pissed to all Hell that the Alpha never told him – then again, Daryl never asked. Rick doesn't tell him things he doesn't ask about.

Glenn shakes his head. "I'm not really sure," he says. "I've never heard it."

Daryl nods, swallowing back his frustration. Negan breaks from the group of women and walks over to them and Daryl lifts his head, letting out a quiet purr when Negan pets through his hair.

"I think that's enough fresh air for one day," he says, and Daryl smiles and pushes himself to his feet, tossing the bundle of rags into the water bucket. "I want this cleaned up by sundown, Glenn," Negan says with a low, warning growl. Daryl feels the Alpha order in it and he shudders, biting his lower lip when Glenn whimpers and ducks his head down.

It fucks people up, that's what Rick had said. He finds it appalling that Negan uses it for no real reason.

They walk back down the hallway and Daryl pauses outside the door, turning to Negan and looking up at the man from under his hair. "Glenn told me he has a pup on the way," he says.

Negan smirks at him, one eyebrow raised. "Broody already?"

Daryl huffs a laugh – this light and flirty thing, and shakes his head. "I was just thinkin'…I mean, from what it sounds like, Rick's the only doctor you guys have around. He should see her, right?" He looks up and bites his lower lip.

Negan cocks his head to one side. "That really where your head's at?" he asks.

Daryl huffs and shifts his weight, toying idly with one of the zips on Negan's leather jacket. He tries not to think around how if he tugged on it hard enough Negan would have to bow forward and Daryl could rip his throat out with one quick bite.

"I mean, honestly, it would be nice to have some time to myself," he says as though admitting something terrible. "Like I said, Rick talks too much."

Negan laughs. "We'll see," he says, petting through Daryl's hair and Daryl rumbles, closing his eyes and leaning into the touch. "Go back inside, sweetheart."

Daryl obeys with a sweet whine, and as soon as the door closes he sheds his clothes and walks over to the shower, sighing when the hot water comes on immediately and scrubs the scent of Negan from his skin.

Rick is in the opposite corner in their nest of blankets and Daryl looks at him when he steps out from under the shower, shaking himself to try and get the water from his hair and skin. It drips down his spine coldly and he shivers, putting the soft clothes back on before he ambles over and sits down in the nest.

Rick looks at him, tense and pained like it's taking everything in him not to cover Daryl like they've grown so accustomed to doing, like he doesn't know if Daryl would welcome his touch. Maybe if Daryl starves him enough for it, he'll finally cave and give Daryl what he wants.

Daryl sighs and leans his head against the wall, baring his throat, and hears Rick whimper. "Talked to Glenn," he says. "He told me his wife's pretty much there with her kid."

Rick sighs. "Maggie," he tells Daryl, and Daryl opens his eyes to see Rick nodding. "Yeah, she should be about ready to pop any day now."

"Told Negan he should let you out to examine her," he says, smirking. "Gimme some time to myself."

Rick looks at him and his expression is almost hurt. "Are you that angry with me?" he asks quietly.

Daryl rolls his eyes. "An expectant mother should have a doctor nearby," he bites out. "Not everything is about you and how much you piss me off."

"Daryl, I just want you to understand -."

"Well, I don't understand," Daryl hisses. "I don't understand and it looks like I might never and as far as I'm concerned you can go fuck yourself. Because if you're not willing to knock me up I got no problem tryin' with any other Alpha with balls enough to fuck me properly."

Rick growls, his eyes flashing. "You don't mean that."

Daryl glares at him. "Maybe not," he admits after a moment, because the thought of another Alpha touching him fills him with revulsion on a very basic, visceral level. "But I like saying things that piss you off."

"I've noticed," Rick says with a small, reluctant smile, before he turns his gaze away. He sighs and closes his eyes. "I don't know what to do."

"I'm going to sleep," Daryl says, and moves so that he's laying down on the nest and hates how much they smell like Rick and loves it at the same time. If their bond strengthens and Glenn's mom's word is to be believed, he'll start to feel Rick's emotions and sense his location at all times as well. If Daryl practices, maybe he can figure out this whole Omega Voice thing and figure out what it can _really_ do.

He hides a smile in the blankets as Rick tentatively lays down as well, stretching out beside him. Rick reaches out with a shaking hand and rests his fingers against Daryl's flank, before smoothing against his stomach and pulling the Omega back against his chest.

Daryl lets out a quiet purr and feels Rick tremble with a relieved breath. The Alpha presses his nose to Daryl's neck and breathes deeply.

"I love you so much," Rick whispers, and Daryl closes his eyes and hums. He can _feel_ it, feel the gentle affection and ardent, impatient love through their bond, like Rick is desperately trying to shove his emotions against Daryl's chest.

He rests one hand over Rick's on his stomach and squeezes gently and Rick lets out a quiet, rumbling purr.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Possibly the most bittersweet sex scene I've ever written.

They come for Rick the next day, the beady-eyed Alpha that Rick greets and finally names as 'Simon' along with Negan, who enters the room with him. Daryl stirs when the door opens and finds Rick already on his feet, walking towards them.

Negan greets him with a smile and after a moment Daryl sees Rick sink to his knees, his head bowed. He doesn't feel the energy he has come to equate with the Alpha Voice in the room, but he doesn't doubt for a second that Negan has used it on Rick before to compel him to kneel. He stifles a low growl.

"Let's go see Maggie," Negan says after Rick stays perfectly still, kneeling, his eyes downcast. Rick gets to his feet and looks over his shoulder at Daryl for a brief moment, before he follows Simon out of the room.

"Alpha?" Daryl asks before Negan can leave as well, and Negan pauses, turning to regard Daryl with a raised eyebrow. Daryl ducks his head and walks over, trying to look as sweet and deferential as he can. "I was hopin' I could get some more food, if there's some to spare."

Negan smiles. "Of course, sweetheart," he says. "You'll all skin and bone. Not good for breedin'."

Daryl smiles, the expression turning to a snarl once Negan leaves. Still, the Alpha's openness to talk about breeding Daryl does warm some part of him. It's nice to know at least _one_ Alpha appreciates his need to bear young.

He goes back to the blankets and sits down, clearing his throat, and tries to think about how it felt when Rick used the Alpha Voice on him, what he might have done within his throat or his chest to bring power to his voice. Negan and Rick seem to do it effortlessly, as though it takes no more conscious thought than breathing.

He takes a deep breath and looks down at his hands and tries to imagine that Rick is there, watching him, waiting for his order. He tries to imagine Rick on his knees, as wrecked and breathless as Daryl had been under the influence of the Alpha Voice.

"Come here," he says, growling when his voice comes out the same as it always has. "Come _here_ ," he says again, trying to put power into his voice and knowing immediately that it's coming out flat and without the influence behind it.

He growls and runs his hands through his hair. He had needed to be alone, to practice and try and figure out what he could of his biology, but as soon as the silence settles in around him he starts to feel anxious and lonely. It's not the same without Rick there. He doesn't like it – this room, even though he's being forced to stay here, is his den, and because it is his den, his Alpha should be in here with him. But he's _not_.

He's out there, touching someone's mate, listening to the heartbeat of a pup, around a pregnant woman and here Daryl is, willing to breed with him and give him a child as well and Rick won't fucking _do it_.

He doesn't understand. Rick has told him as much countless times. He wants to understand and he wants to remember but he just can't and it's driving him crazy. He wonders if he could convince Negan to let him out again and speak with the other Alphas and the women in Eden. Maybe something there will trigger a memory, or a response, some deep flicker of superconscious that he must rely upon so heavily now.

He runs his hands down his thighs, fingers catching in the soft clothes. He frowns when he sees a patch of orange on them and looks down at himself, seeing a smear of it on the chest as well. He hadn't noticed before. It looks vaguely like the letter _E_.

A vision slams into his skull hard enough to make him gasp. _A, B, C…_ Workers. These are work clothes. They put Alphas to work in them. He looks at the orange letter and tries to think. He remembers – he remembers Rick mentioning that. Alphas had to earn their keep here. They were given work clothes but he doesn't remember seeing anyone outside in them. Maybe these are old.

They must be old because Daryl can't smell a trace of another man on them. Women don't work. Women are pretty and are kept as wives, for breeding. _Negan_ has wives. He feels this and knows it to be true. Those two women he'd been talking to were his wives. He has many.

Do Alphas take many mates as a common practice?

He growls, thinking of Rick with a woman or another Omega. His blood turns hot and his vision sharpens at the threat that doesn't exist. He'd _kill_ anyone who tried to vie for Rick's attention. Rick is _his_. His Alpha – his _mate_.

He feels the anger rising in him though, irrational and unstoppable. Then, something soothes him. He feels it like he felt the Alpha Voice, pushing against his chest and rubbing up his spine. It's Rick – Rick is reaching out to him and soothing him. He can feel soft pulses of worry from the Alpha and imagines Rick is frowning, trying to focus on his work – or maybe still walking in place behind Simon – and trying desperately to reach out to Daryl to calm him down. He wonders if Rick is wondering what is happening to make him so angry.

When he comes back, Daryl will soak him in his scent. Rick is _his_.

He growls and turns his head to one side, trying to latch onto the feeling of Rick's consciousness rubbing against his spine. His fingers curl as he digs his claws into it and tugs and it's like he can feels Rick's surprise, like Rick is sitting right next to him. He feels his eyes widen, and then hears him purring. Or maybe that's Daryl himself. He can no longer tell.

_It's like they're one person._

"Rick," he growls, gasping when he feels his voice tremble and it feels thick. It feels _powerful_ , and he feels Rick surge against him in kind. His eyes fly open and he gasps. " _Rick_."

_I'm here, Daryl._

It's…he shakes his head, clutching at it weakly. He can hear Rick's voice _in his head._ He whines, the sound plaintive, and feels Rick rubbing up against him with a soothing purr.

_Daryl, what are you doing?_

"I can feel you," Daryl whispers, clutching at his head. "I can… _feel_ you."

 _I know_.

"What is this?"

_It's the bond. Daryl, are you okay?_

Rick's worry pulses through him and Daryl whines, feeling his heartbeat stutter in his chest. It feels too intimate, too raw, having Rick in his head. He shoves at the feeling and it's like Rick is physically there and stumbling back. He wonders if Rick has to speak out loud as well, if he's talking to the walls.

He tries not to cling so hard, and lets out a low whine. "I miss you," he says.

 _I miss you too,_ comes Rick's reply, thick with affection. Daryl blinks and feels in the room and not in the room at once. His skin feels cold like he's in a different room, and he thinks he can vaguely hear other people's voices but can't make out what they're saying. _Do you need me there?_

"No," Daryl says. "You need to take care of Maggie."

 _I will_ , Rick says. Daryl can feel his consciousness withdrawing and lets out a quiet whimper.

"Come back to me," he whimpers, and feels Rick's mind shiver at the order. "When you're done. Come back to me." His voice is thick and _powerful_ and he knows that _this_ is the Omega Voice – and suddenly it makes sense why only bonded Omegas get one. They must draw, somehow, on the power of their Alphas.

 _I love you,_ Rick says with one more brush against his mind before he retreats. Daryl has never felt so alone when he's gone. After having Rick there, with him but not with him, Daryl feels strangely disconnected, like he's lost a part of his flesh and it's out there, carried in Rick's chest.

His head snaps up as the door opens and an Alpha flings some meat inside. Daryl growls and lunges for it, but stops himself just before he can sink his teeth into it. He gathers it up to his chest and prowls back over to the nest of blankets and hides it in the folds. If he can hoard enough, he can share it with Rick and make sure he regains his strength.

They're both going to need to be at their prime for what's coming.

 

 

It feels like days before Rick returns to him and as soon as the door is closed Daryl flings himself into the Alpha's arms, clinging to him with a low whimper and Rick holds him just as tightly, with just as much urgency as Daryl is feeling.

Rick is breathing heavily, his skin warm and damp with sweat. "I ran," he says. "You called me and I ran."

"I know," Daryl replies, and kisses Rick breathlessly. Rick answers him in kind, shoving him up against the nearest wall and grinding against him. "Rick, _please_. I need you."

"I know," Rick answers, kissing him again. He growls low in his throat and Daryl trembles at the power there. "Get on your knees for me."

Daryl sinks to his hands and knees immediately, groaning when Rick covers him. He's slick for his Alpha, already wet and waiting, and he whimpers when Rick touches the bare skin of his back, pushing his shirt up to touch the warm flesh of his mate.

"Do you know what you've done?" Rick demands, pulling the rest of Daryl's clothes from his body and Daryl barely has the presence of mind to help him. He feels Rick sliding along his back, physically and in his head as well. Rick's consciousness rubs up against him and Daryl moans weakly, able to feel the desperate pulse of his Alpha's desire in his head as well as the physical evidence of Rick's cock rubbing against his ass through Rick's clothes. "You're going to ruin us both."

"I'm sorry," Daryl gasps. He can feel in Rick's head how anxious Rick is, overridden by the Alpha's desire but still there, throbbing like a tender wound. Rick is terrified and Daryl has made him that way and he's _sorry_ but he can't think past the feeling of Rick's hands on him and the way he so desperately needs his Alpha to touch him.

"I can't hide anything from you now," Rick says, almost in accusation.

Daryl whines when two of Rick's fingers sink into him, he falls to his elbows and arches his ass up as Rick frees his cock and slides it between Daryl's thighs. It's familiar and not enough but Daryl can feel Rick's mind now and knows Rick is determined not to give him more.

"I could make you," Daryl says weakly, when Rick's fingers slid deep into him and rub against his prostate. It's like Rick wants to hurt him but can't bring himself to. Rick growls behind him and plasters himself to Daryl's back, teeth on his neck. "I could make you fuck me, couldn't I?"

"Yes," Rick replies. Daryl shivers, feeling his Alpha's anger like a physical thing. He wouldn't – Rick must know he wouldn't. But oh, how he wants to.

"Please," Daryl whispers, shaking finely. "Please, Rick, just…just once. Please, just once."

Rick groans, pulling his fingers out and Daryl whines loudly. He feels shaky and on edge, Rick's emotions and needs clashing with his and he can feel how _badly_ Rick wants to mount him, how his resolve is crumbling and weakening at Daryl's desperate cries. Rick is right, he can't hide anything from Daryl now, and Daryl has his teeth in his neck and can shake him into submission if he really wanted to.

He's not using the Omega Voice, he can't make his throat work right, but his voice is thick with need when he turns his head to see Rick's red eyes. "Just once," he pleads again, arching back to feel the way Rick's body melts so easily against him.

Rick looks at him for an agonizingly long moment, before he takes a deep breath and puts his hands on Daryl's hips. "Order me," he commands. He's using the Alpha Voice and Daryl can _feel_ it, and his own eyes are itching, showing his gold, he's sure. Rick shudders. "Tell me I can't knot you."

Daryl licks his lips, thrumming with anticipation, and he can't disobey because Rick is commanding him to and like breathing, the Omega Voice comes easily to his own lips; "Don't knot me," he says, and Rick's eyes flash red and he closes his eyes.

"Like you mean it," Rick growls.

"But I don't mean it."

" _Like you mean it, Daryl_."

Daryl chokes on his breath, shoulders curling in from the force of Rick's command. "Alpha," he whines, reaching back to grab weakly onto Rick's hands. " _Don't knot me_."

"That's it," Rick says, purring. His cock is red and thick, leaking steadily already. Daryl can feel the slick little pool of precome against the small of his back. Rick's anger fades abruptly, replaced with warm affection and praise and Daryl trembles.

Rick rocks his hips back, agonizingly slowly, and Daryl's breath catches when he feels the head of Rick's cock slide against his slick hole. He arches his hips up to ensure the best angle, falling into the classic mounting position with ease, and Rick shakes and gasps and then finally, _fucking finally_ , Daryl feels the head of his cock push against Daryl's hole.

His body goes lax, submissive to his Alpha, and he lets out a visceral, satisfied moan as he feels Rick penetrate him. Another vision slams into his head, one just like this but he's sure it's not a memory. It's a fantasy of Rick's, because they're not in the room but they're outside, in a forest made of ash, and Rick has him just like this, on his hands and knees and Rick's fingers laced through his and fucking him brutally and it's _happening now_.

Rick sinks into him, his cock sending hot flares through Daryl's body. It hurts, it surprises him how much it hurts. He's slick but he's not stretched and his body is clenching up tightly around his Alpha's cock and it makes him whine because he _wants_ it. He wants it so badly. Rick doesn't let him shy away. He covers Daryl's body and pushes up onto his knees and forces Daryl's hips down to the best angle.

" _Rick_ ," Daryl howls, clawing at Rick's thighs but he isn't sure if he's trying to get the Alpha to stop or pull him closer. Rick's mind is a mesh with Daryl's, wild and raw and he can feel how good his body feels to Rick. He's tight and slick and hot, _Omega, my Omega – yes -._

Then Rick opens his mouth wide on Daryl's nape and bites down and slams into him with one brutal thrust, shoving Daryl onto his stomach, and Daryl howls again. One of Rick's hands flies to his mouth and covers it, forcing him to stifle his cries. Daryl licks Rick's palm and tastes himself on his Alpha's fingers.

"My Daryl," Rick snarls, and his voice is all Alpha. Daryl feels the claim down to his bones and he whines in agreement as Rick's hips start to move smoothly. Daryl is slick enough that the going is easy and his body goes as lax as it can, submitting to the intrusion of Rick's cock inside of him. Rick's arousal is burning in Daryl's spine, his lust blinding him. His eyes are glowing gold to match Rick's red and he shoves himself against his Alpha's body, able to feel the strength and power in every muscle as Rick mounts him and claims him with single-minded intent.

_Gonna breed you -. Can't, can't breed -. Fuck, Daryl, help me._

"Don't knot me," Daryl says, trying to speak past Rick's hand but he can't and Rick growls but his hand tightens like he doesn't want Daryl to be able to tell him to stop. Daryl doesn’t _want_ him to stop, and he's sure his own desire is fucking with Rick's alignment as much as Rick's is messing with his. Rick's cock is thick and hard, penetrating deep in Daryl's body, Rick fucks him like he has no other meaning in his life than to mount Daryl and claim him.

His nape burns where Rick's teeth are but he wants it and he _wants it_. "Don't knot me," Daryl tries again but there's no heat there, no Omega Voice. Rick isn't going to be able to obey. "Don't – _don't_ , God, Rick _please_."

_Alpha, please._

Rick shudders, his free hand digging tightly enough into Daryl's hip that it hurts and Daryl whines. His Alpha is powerful, forceful, able to kill without reproach and protect him when he's heavy with pups and unable to defend himself. Rick can hunt for them and provide for him and Daryl knows he doesn't have much experience with Alphas but he can't imagine any of them would prove as worthy as Rick.

The feeling of being claimed lights Daryl up from the inside. He's so slick he can hear it leaking out around Rick's cock, making the sound of their skin meeting wet and hot and loud. He gives another stifled, broken howl and bows his head as he feels his orgasm bearing down from the base of his spine.

 _Come for me, Omega._ Rick's growl is powerful enough to shake the foundations and Daryl whimpers, shuddering and clenching up tightly around Rick's cock. His fingers curl in the bedding and he rips at it, as though fighting to get away but Rick is pinning him down and has caught him completely and Daryl can't run.

He doesn't want to run.

_Fuck me, Alpha – breed me._

_Daryl -._

Rick slams into him one more time and he lets Daryl's mouth go and Daryl gasps, his jaw sore from the force of Rick's grip. "Don't," he tries one more time, but it's too late. He can feel the stretch of Rick against him, knows his knot is coming as much as he knows that the sun will rise and breathing is as simple as in and out.

Rick snarls against his nape and it sounds pained. "Daryl," he says, and it sounds like he's begging, but he's not pulling away. He can't pull out now. The stretch of his knot is burning and painful and Daryl whines, tears coming to his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he says. He can feel Rick's anxiety stabbing through the haze of pleasure, Rick's fear and worry crashing down on him like a rockslide. He shakes his head and Rick shudders and fucks in again and Daryl can feel his knot, stretching tight just past his rim. Rick growls and his teeth sink a little deeper against Daryl's neck. "God, I'm so sorry – I'm _sorry_."

Rick lets out a pained-sounding howl, letting go of Daryl's nape so that he doesn't bite any deeper, and then Daryl gasps as he feels Rick coming. It's hot and wet, and he can feel each spurt of come, each twitch of Rick's cock inside of him as the Alpha's knot plugs him and Rick fills him with his seed.

The feeling of satisfaction is ruined by the raw, angry sensation sliding through their bond from both sides. Daryl had _promised_ he'd make Rick stop but he hadn't been able to and now Rick can't pull out and they're stuck and Daryl _wants_ it but he knows Rick shouldn't have done this and now they can't go back.

His face is tacky with tears and he shakes his head, his shoulders trembling with sobs. "I'm so sorry," he says, running his hands through his hair because even now his instincts are screaming at him to appease his Alpha. Rick is angry, hurt from the inside and Daryl can't even bear to look at him. "I'm so fucking sorry – I couldn't stop, I -."

Rick lets out a quiet, soothing sound and Daryl falls silent. He feels Rick nuzzling against his sweaty hair and the Alpha's big, warm hands petting down his flanks. "Hush," Rick says quietly, his voice powerful but not Alpha, not commanding. He's purring loudly, the feeling vibrating against Daryl's spine. Rick shivers as he dumps another load of come inside of Daryl and Daryl whines. "I'm not angry at you."

"I'm sorry," Daryl says again, moaning when Rick brushes his nose against Daryl's nape and licks over the tender mark he left there. Fissures of pleasure are returning to him, deep-seated satisfaction from both him and Rick. Rick is _pleased_ , glowing with affection and Daryl feels the mess of his emotions; the primal satisfaction of mounting his Omega; his pride at how well Daryl took his knot; his pleasure at the feeling of Daryl's tight ass accepting everything he has to offer as Rick pumps him full of his seed.

One of Rick's hands brushes down his flank and then cups Daryl's stomach in a gesture he doesn't even seem to think about, and his purring gets louder. "Just once," he murmurs into Daryl's ear. "If you get pregnant, then so be it. I'm not letting you go."

Daryl gasps, another sob shaking him. It feels like there isn't enough air in the room and he arches up against Rick, relieved beyond description when he feels the Alpha slide against him in mind and body, soothing Daryl's shaking limbs and easing them back onto the bedding, Daryl on his stomach and Rick covering him.

"How long does a knot last?" Daryl asks.

"It varies," Rick says. His voice sounds wrecked, and Daryl wonders if the Alpha Voice makes that happen. "Typically about ten minutes."

Ten minutes of Rick filling him up and laying with him like this. Daryl can't help but purr and Rick lets out a weak laugh.

He turns his head with a plaintive whine and Rick leans down and kisses him, chaste and sweet. "I love you," Rick says, his eyes back to that pretty blue. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop myself."

"Didn't want you to," Daryl admits, though he's sure that much is obvious.

Rick nods. "But I didn't want you…feeling this," Rick says, ducking his gaze away. "I knew you could feel what I feel to some extent, and it's going to fuck with you. I never wanted that for you."

"I think I need it," Daryl says. "I need to feel you. Wanting me. _Needing_ me."

"Always," Rick replies, kissing him again. Daryl shivers as Rick's cock shoots another spurt of come inside of him, it's so warm and he feels heavy with it. Rick shivers and nuzzles against Daryl's neck, his hands sliding up to find their familiar spot on Daryl's wrists. Daryl sighs, purring loudly as Rick goes lax against his back.

"What made you so angry, before?" Rick asks curiously. "I felt it so suddenly, like you were in the room with me."

Daryl shrugs, biting his lower lip. "I was thinking about you being around Maggie," he says, hiding his face when Rick lets out a curious rumble. "I thought of you with someone else, with pups from someone else. Pissed me off."

Rick's hands tighten around his wrists and Daryl frowns when he feels a flicker of guilt cross their mental connection. "Rick?" he asks hesitantly.

Rick sighs. "I have a son," he says, and Daryl goes tense. "He's almost sixteen now. His mother's dead."

"…Oh," Daryl says, and wonders how he can so violently hate someone that hasn't been a part of Rick's life well before Daryl entered it. "Where is he now?"

"Safe. Far away from here," Rick says with a sigh, burying his face in Daryl's hair. "I made sure of that."

Daryl hums, forcing the anger away from him. He has no right to be angry, and he can feel Rick's sadness and guilt wrapped around his spine and does his best to put out something soothing, trying to calm it away. "What's his name?"

"Carl," Rick replies.

"When we're out of here, maybe we can find him," Daryl says.

Rick huffs. "Maybe," he says. He still sounds sad and Daryl tries to calm him, purring softly and glad when Rick starts to purr as well, rumbling deep in his chest.


	8. Chapter 8

Now that Rick is in his head, Daryl can't make him leave. He doesn't want to – his consciousness soaks into Rick and rubs against him like a she-cat and he can feel Rick's contentment, seated deep in his chest like Daryl is feeling it there himself. He knows how Omegas can die or go feral without their bonded Alpha. If he were to ever lose Rick, if he ever felt that piece of Rick inside of him snapped suddenly off, he doesn't know what he would do.

Rick ends up mounting him again, unable to help himself with Daryl so willing and desperate underneath him. They roll together, shivering and sweaty as Rick fucks Daryl roughly. Every time he sinks into Daryl, Daryl feels how good it is, how nice his slick, open body feels accepting Rick's cock. He tries to push his own pleasure back in kind, meshing with Rick's mind as he feels his Alpha deep inside of him – he wants Rick to know how badly he wants it, how good it feels when Rick mounts him and touches him. Rick purrs constantly through it all, unable to stop himself.

He doesn't knot Daryl again, pulling out and stroking himself to orgasm so that his come paints Daryl's back. Daryl can feel the slick of his come leaking out of him and staining his thighs and he moans when Rick covers him again, reaching underneath his body to stroke his cock slowly until Daryl shivers with his own release.

With Rick's mind with his, Daryl can sense strings of consciousness, of memory. He can see Rick interacting with others in Eden. He sees Glenn when he told Rick Maggie was pregnant, the elation in Rick and the victor-scent of Alpha on Glenn when he'd shared the news. He sees Rick sharing a beer with Abraham as they'd watched the walls.

He sees other things, too, scraps of darkness that are too frightening to go near. Rick has seen things, and done things, that Daryl has done as well but he feels Rick's revulsion when he thinks about them. Rick doesn't delight in his kills like Daryl does. He doesn't feel primal and satisfied when he sinks his teeth into another Alpha's neck.

Rick trembles above him and Daryl lets out a soothing rumble, turning so that he's on his stomach and stroking through Rick's hair until Rick looks at him. "I don't care about any of that," he says, and Rick presses his lips together and lets out another quiet whine.

"I've hurt people," he says.

"I've killed people," Daryl replies. "I want to do it again."

"That's different," Rick says. "It's different with Omegas."

"I don't see how."

Rick sighs, tilting his head into Daryl's petting hand and resting his cheek on Daryl's chest. His fingers trace idle lines down Daryl's flanks as though trying to memorize every dip in his flesh and every scar put there, either by himself or by other wounds Daryl has had inflicted on him through his life.

"Show me when you saw me," Daryl says after a moment. "I want to see it."

Rick lets out a quiet breath, and nods. "Close your eyes," he says, and Daryl does so, humming softly as he feels Rick's mind brush against him like an embrace. It feels like Rick is leading him somewhere and Daryl goes. The darkness of his eyelids melts away, revealing forest and a winding dirt road.

He sees it through Rick's eyes, darting this way and that as he prowls through the undergrowth. He hears the idling rumble of a car and remembers Rick telling him that he'd been on a run when he found Daryl.

The scent of blood explodes across him like a taste on his tongue and he growls low in his chest as he feels Rick do it, eyes sharpening like putting the world in hyper focus, but his vision doesn't go red like Daryl's does. He hears whimpering.

Rick slinks forward, low to the ground, and breathes in deeply. _Omega_. The word flies across his head, a realization like a battering ram. He feels the fear Rick had felt, because Omegas are dangerous and feral and can easily rip apart an unsuspecting Alpha.

There's another whimper, a voice Daryl recognizes as his own, and Rick pushes some shrubbery aside to reveal Daryl. Daryl lets out a low sound of distress when he sees himself. He looks torn to pieces, blood caking his entire body. His shoulder is little more than a hunk of flesh and reveals bone when the sunlight shines on him. His leg has been almost torn off, laying limply at an unnatural angle. Rick takes another deep breath and he can smell Daryl's blood and his scent.

Daryl gasps when he feels what Rick had felt. _I saw you and I had to take you with me_. The Daryl in the vision is awake, his eyes shining a brilliant gold when he lifts his head and bares his teeth at Rick, snapping at him to try and dissuade him from coming closer.

 _He's so young_ , he hears Rick think, and then Rick is kneeling next to him and soothes a hand across Daryl's nape to make him go lax. Daryl whimpers and it echoes the sound the him in Rick's vision makes.

"Shh, you're alright," Rick says, both in the vision and out loud. "'M not gonna hurt you."

The injured Daryl snaps at him again, growling softly, and Rick laughs. "Hush, Omega," he says, a tiny thread of the Alpha Voice there with a hand on Daryl's nape to get him to calm down. "You're safe. I'm gonna take care of you."

The vision abruptly fades and Daryl gasps, his eyes flying open and his chest heaving as reality crashes back into him. Rick raises his head and looks at him and Daryl can feel how much Rick adores him, how from that first second he'd been enamored with Daryl and how that had only grown the more time they spent together.

"I don't think it was love at first sight," Rick says, sheepishly. "But pretty damn close."

"Did I attack you?"

"Several times," Rick says with a nod. "At first I had you restrained, so that I could fix you and put the metal in and make sure you were going to live. And then you started healing yourself and I let you go. You almost killed me that day."

Daryl frowns. He can't imagine that. Then again, he knows how he gets when his vision goes red. And he's attacked Rick several times since but always stopped at the last minute. "I stopped?" he asks. "Without you orderin' me to?"

"Yes," Rick says, smiling.

Daryl runs a hand through his hair, sighing heavily. "I feel so heavy," he says, and feels Rick's consciousness retreat from him somewhat, becoming like a pillow instead of a heavy blanket on his chest. He sighs in relief. "I don't know if I can control it. I don't even know how it works. The Omega Voice."

"I know," Rick says, shaking his head. He pushes himself up so he's kneeling over Daryl and rubs absently at his chest. "That was…one of the reasons I wouldn't let myself fuck you. I knew I wouldn't be able to control myself, that the bond would strengthen and you might feel it for real."

"Why would you keep that from me?"

"I don't want you to feel what I feel," Rick says, shaking his head again. "I get…very angry, sometimes. And I hate being here, and I want to kill Negan whenever I look at him – and I didn't need that in your head as well, because you actually could."

"You'll be with me, though, right?" Daryl asks. "Whenever Negan makes up this contest thing."

A flicker of anger trickles between their bond, frustrated and hot. "Yes," Rick says, growling low. "Whatever it takes. I'm yours."

Daryl smiles, and leans up for a kiss that Rick eagerly answers. As soon as Daryl touches him he can feel how Rick lights up under his hands, how his mind becomes heavy and clouded with desire and it affects him, too. He wants his Alpha to mount him and claim him – wants to bear his pups and wear the mark of his bite in a thick and red scar on his neck.

Rick groans, pushing Daryl so he's lying on his back and covering him again. "I want you so badly," Rick confesses in a whisper, but he doesn't need to because Daryl can feel it. Rick moans like he's been punched, and Daryl can feel how hard Rick is trying to get himself to pull away and end the kiss before he ends up mounting Daryl again.

"You're too good at making me need you," Rick says.

Daryl swallows hard, throat clicking. "If I ask you to, will you fuck me again?"

Rick nods, breathing hard.

"And if I tell you not to, will you stop?"

Rick whimpers, biting his lip, and kisses Daryl in answer. The desire in Rick's head is thick and hot and fuzzy, blanketing Daryl until it feels like it's smothering him, until Daryl doesn't know where in the bond his thoughts end and Rick's start. He doesn't think it matters. They are one and the same now, united and strong and bonded together so tightly that Daryl thinks he would feel if Rick got hurt, and Rick would feel if Daryl was hungry, and any other thing that might be passed from one of them to the other.

"Watch," Daryl says, and he brings them back to the forest where Rick found him but this time Rick finds him whole and well, slick with heat and whimpering for an entirely different reason than pain. Rick snarls, his eyes flashing red, and the Daryl in the vision looks at him with his eyes completely golden.

"Don't test me like this," Rick says, but his voice is weak and he wants it. He grabs Daryl's arms tightly and pulls him down the blankets until he's more thoroughly covered by Rick, his thighs spread to make room for the Alpha to sink between them and rut his cock in the slick space there.

_Omega._

_Alpha._

Rick groans, kissing Daryl hard as Daryl lifts his hips and Rick's cockhead catches on his slick hole, sinking inside one gloriously unsatisfying inch. Rick's hands tighten on him and Daryl feels his need to fuck in deeper, to sink into Daryl. "Just once," Daryl says, clearing his throat. "Don't knot me. Just fuck me."

"Oh, god, _Daryl_ ," Rick groans, his face going tight with need. "I _want_ to."

"I won't stop you," Daryl says, running his hands up Rick's chest and then bringing them back down, nails digging into his Alpha's flesh to raise little red lines that make Rick tremble. "Love feelin' how much you need me."

" _Fuck_." Rick abruptly pulls out of him, breathing hard, and shoves himself away from Daryl's body. He's sweaty and his chest is red from arousal and he runs his trembling hands through his hair. He shakes his head. "I can't. I _can't_."

His consciousness withdraws from Daryl so abruptly that Daryl's body goes still and cold and he lets out a cry of pain, holding his head in his hands. It's empty, so empty – Rick isn't there with him anymore. He whimpers lowly and hears Rick's shuddering exhale. He looks up and sees the Alpha's expression tight with pain, tears in his eyes like it's causing him incredible pain to be parted from Daryl and Daryl whines.

"Come back," he says thickly, a lump in his throat. "Please. Come back to me."

Rick shakes his head, jaw clenching. He gets up and walks towards the corner of the room where the shower is and Daryl scrambles to his feet and slams him against the wall. The shower comes on over them, soaking them with the warm water, and he snarls at Rick.

" _Come back_ ," he commands, and his voice is heavy and powerful and Rick's eyes go wide. Rick trembles, like it's taking all of his effort to keep himself upright, and Daryl snarls again and sinks his nails into Rick's stomach. "I swear to God I'll -."

Rick returns to him, heavy as an avalanche, and Daryl's voice goes silent, choked off. He's sure Rick can feel his anger and Rick lets out a quiet, plaintive sound, tilting his head to one side to bare his throat. Daryl growls and leans in, sinking his teeth into the Alpha's neck hard enough that he's sure there'll be a mark left behind.

"Daryl, please understand -." Rick's hands touch him gently, his shoulders and flanks, and Daryl jerks his head and feels Rick go tense from the pain. He doesn't rip, doesn't let his canines sink in to do any real, permanent damage, but he feels the flash of pain brush across his consciousness and lets out a satisfied growl.

He lets Rick's neck go so that he can speak. "You ever do that again, I'll fuckin' kill ya," he says, the powerful quality still in his voice to make it Omega. Rick trembles, his scent soaked with fear but muted under the water. He remembers Rick admitting that the Alpha Voice fucks with people and he can feel how anxious and afraid Rick is under his influence. He wonders if it will work on other Alphas, or just his bonded mate.

"It's all Alphas," Rick says, sensing his thoughts. "And it's powerful."

Daryl smirks, nuzzling Rick's bitten throat. "Good to know."

 

 

They shower and clean themselves off as best they can until their scents are a little more neutral. Daryl doesn't let Rick touch him again, too angry and bristling with it to let his Alpha close. Rick doesn't say anything else, but lets out soft, child-like sounds whenever Daryl looks at him, and Daryl knows what he's doing, he knows because he can feel Rick's thoughts.

Omegas are programmed to nurture and care for children and the vulnerable. Rick is appealing to that side of him, just as Daryl knows he can act sweet and coy to get Alphas to soften up to him. Omegas beg, and whimper, and act like submissive little things that need to be protected because Alphas are stupid and prideful and react to things like that. Omegas are smarter, more vicious. They only care for what they love.

Still, he shows Rick the meat he'd tricked Negan into giving him and is pleased when Rick consumes it all. His Alpha will need to be strong for what's coming.

The door opens a while later, Daryl feels vaguely like it's night time. Negan is there, grinning widely at the two of them and Daryl doesn't miss how Rick tries to pull his hair forward to hide the bite there. He growls lowly, angry that Rick is trying to hide Daryl's claim on him. Any woman or other Omega might think he was unclaimed. That is unacceptable.

"You ready, Daryl?" Negan asks, and Daryl bites his lower lip and nods, walking over. "Rick, come with us."

Negan leads them out to the arena-like setup where Daryl had killed Spencer, and tells Daryl to walk inside. Daryl looks back at him, tense and anxious. He can feel Rick's fear clogging his throat and feeding into his nervousness and does his best to ignore it. The crowd here is bigger than before, it's like everyone in Eden is here to watch whatever Negan has in store for them.

"As I'm sure you all know," Negan says jovially, "we have an Omega in our midst." There's a chorus of murmurs. The scent of Alpha is thick in the air. "And Daryl here, well, he has certain needs."

Daryl's eyes snap to him, wide and afraid. He wants to run, and hide, but there's nowhere for him to go. He presses his lips together and tries to fight the urge to flee.

"See, Omegas are special," Negan continues, his eyes sharp, his grin predatory. "They ain't like women. Won't just fuck and breed for anyone. So! I've got an idea for a little game we can play to see who might get the honor of breeding with Daryl here."

 _Rick,_ Daryl thinks, shaking with anxiety.

He feels Rick brushing against him but the Alpha is so afraid and worried as well that it doesn't do much good.

"Any Alpha that wants to try is gonna have to prove, to both me and Daryl, that they're worth their shit," Negan goes on. Daryl is tense and can't stop himself pacing back and forth. His head hurts and his eyes are fading out to that red vision until all he can see is the heat of those gathered. "And I figured, what better way to do that than to have Daryl choose for himself?"

Daryl stops pacing, looking at Negan with wide eyes. He feels Negan grin, his smile a black void of darkness within the soft orange of his face and the white of his chest. "What does that mean?" he finally asks, when it seems like no one else will speak.

Negan smiles. "I'm gonna have them fight you," he says. "Now, sweetheart, I'd rather you didn't kill all my men, so try and just make sure they earn it if they get to fuck you."

Daryl sucks in a breath, flinching away. He can't possibly fight all these Alphas. And with Negan watching, he will have to. He'll have to keep going until he can't anymore but what if the Alpha that's in the ring with him forces him to his hands and knees and tries to breed him? He'll fight to the fucking death if it isn't Rick.

He looks back at Negan and sees something predatory and calculating on his face and he knows without a shadow of a doubt that Negan had planned this all along. He'll start with the ones that are weak, or a problem. He'll force the Alphas that cause trouble to fight Daryl so that he kills them.

"Why don't we start with…"

And Daryl also has no doubt that Rick is on that list.

Negan's eyes land on Rick and Daryl snarls, feeling the tension in Rick coil up into something tight and angry and resigned.

"Rick. Would you like to get us started?"

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a rough day at work and I'm being made to visit a Trump golf course this weekend and I don't want to and so you're getting a lot of anger and murder in this chapter.  
> Like....really graphic stuff. I cannot downplay how much Daryl fucks up these Alphas in this chapter so please! Read with caution if you're sensitive to people getting killed in really graphic and bad ways.

Daryl is trembling, tense and angry. He can't bring himself to look at Rick and see the Alpha's eyes – not that he's sure he can right now. All he can see is heat, clustered around him in a white halo as the Alphas watch on in tense wonder.

"Rick," Negan says again, his voice harder now. Daryl growls, shaking his head and putting his head in his hands. "If you'd be so kind."

"No," Rick says, and his denial echoes with a chorus of surprised murmurs following it. Rick is saying _'No'_ to Negan – he doesn't want to fight for his right to breed an Omega? Why? Daryl whines and runs his fingers through his hair. His claws are growing out, sharpening, and he can feel his teeth getting longer in his mouth, ready to fight.

"No?" Negan repeats. He doesn't sound angry – more amused than anything else, like Rick is an adorable child throwing a weak tantrum.

"I don't want to fuck him," Rick says.

Daryl growls and lifts his head and he knows Rick isn’t looking at him but he can feel his Alpha in his head. Rick is trying his best to soothe him but they're both too tense and angry for it to work. Daryl shoves at Rick's consciousness, although whether to push him away or arch closer he can't be sure.

Negan laughs. "Suit yourself," he says. "Any other volunteers?"

"I will."

Daryl's head snaps up and his eyes narrow as he sees an Alpha stepping into the ring. He hears Negan give a crow of delight, smacking his gloves hands together in short applause. "Dwight! Excellent. Good man."

Daryl snarls, lifting his upper lip to show his fangs and he hears the Alpha rumble in reply as Dwight starts to circle him. Daryl can't see his face, it's just a mesh of orange and red, but he can smell the Alpha as Dwight edges around him.

 _He has a knife,_ Rick tells him, anxiously brushing against Daryl's mind. It feels like he's pressed against glass, trying desperately to reach for Rick but he can't. The heat-haze is making his mind go fuzzy and clouded, the only desire in him to find a worthy Alpha and kill whoever else might be in his way. Daryl tightens his fingers and rakes them down his arms, hissing when he feels his skin burning with the feeling of his nails.

Daryl isn't afraid of being hurt. He'll heal or he'll die. He just has to make sure he can keep fighting.

Dwight's scent is heavy and sour and Daryl can smell other Alphas as they start to get high on the anticipation of the fight. He remembers how much they'd liked watching him fight Spencer, tricking him into thinking he wanted to mate. Daryl wants to save that, he's already given himself away and knows this Alpha won't be so easily fooled, but maybe he can use his scent and his slick to confuse and disorient them enough to bring this Dwight down.

Dwight hisses and lunges for him and Daryl shies away with a soft whine, backing up to the edge of the arena before he thinks better of it, fearing an attack from behind. Negan had said he had to fight but he never said it was going to be one-on-one the whole time.

"Come on, Omega. Don't have ta hurt you." Daryl snarls, and Rick's anger flashes hotly behind his eyes.

He lunges and drags his claws down Dwight's chest and stomach before he flinches back as Dwight swings his knife towards Daryl. The knife doesn't touch him but Daryl can smell the metal on it, smell lingering blood there. Maybe it's a knife for skinning kills, or maybe it's serrated and meant to dig in and do more damage coming out.

Dwight's blood is thick and Daryl lifts a finger to his mouth, purring when he tastes it there, warm and coppery. He snarls again and hears Dwight let out a harsh breath. "Try that again," Dwight says, challenging, and Daryl does – he circles quickly and rushes Dwight and growls when he feels the knife catch his arm but then he has his teeth in Dwight's throat. He bites down and yanks hard enough that he feels flesh and skin rip and he darts away again, snarling low in his throat when he hears Dwight let out a shocked, burbling gasp, and the Alpha falls to his knees.

Daryl spits his flesh out and rumbles, able to feel Rick's pride and relief, before it tightens to fear again and Daryl turns to see another Alpha rushing him. This Alpha is huge, twice his size at least, and he barrels into Daryl before the Omega can right himself, sending them both crashing to the floor.

The onlookers let out whoops and hollers, cheering the Alpha on as his big hands grab Daryl's wrists and force them over his head. Daryl snaps at him, baring his teeth, and hears the Alpha laugh and then he goes still when he feels a big hand go around his throat and squeeze tightly.

It cuts off his air and he gasps, spluttering weakly as the Alpha sits on his thighs and the only saving grace is that the Alpha can't possibly mount him like this. He'll have to let go eventually and Daryl is tense, shaking, ready for the slightest give in the Alpha's defense.

He gets it when the Alpha snarls, low in victory, and lets go of his hands. Daryl leans up and claws at the Alpha's face and digs his nails into the other man's eyes, gritting his teeth when the Alpha howls and lets his neck go and Daryl feels air return to his burning lungs.

He feels the soft gush of the Alpha's eyes give under his sharp nails and hooks his fingertips in the sockets and wrenches down, clawing the Alpha's face and cleaving his cheeks and jaw apart. He leans up and bites at the Alpha's throat, wrenching this way and that like a mountain cat taking down a deer. The Alpha goes limp for just a moment and Daryl scrambles out from underneath him and stabs his eyes again, using the grip to push the man's head back so that he can rip out a thick wad of flesh from his neck and send him to the ground in a limp heap next to Dwight.

He staggers back, breathing heavily, sick on the scent of blood. Through Rick's eyes he can see himself, soaked in red, his eyes glowing golden as he rubs at his throat and shakes his head. He looks towards Rick and finds the Alpha, paler than the others, a cooler red than the rest of the white.

 _Behind you_ , Rick says, gripping the edge of the arena tightly and Daryl turns, his shoulders aching from concrete rash and his throat burning. He bares his teeth and snarls at the approaching Alpha. He's about the same size as the one before and stinks of cigar smoke. It burns Daryl's nose.

"Hey, now, hey," the Alpha says, and his voice is somewhat pleasant but it's still not _Rick_. Daryl shivers and growls at him again as the Alpha raises his hands in a placating gesture. "Easy. Don't gotta be afraid."

Daryl isn't afraid. He's _pissed_. These Alphas keep coming at him when he's distracted and it's not honorable and none of them are _his Alpha_. He wants Rick. He wants Rick to step into the ring. Daryl will go to his knees in a second for Rick, he knows that – but they can't make it look too easy. He understands. He has to fight.

But this Alpha doesn't seem intent on attacking him. He's speaking calmly, softly, like he's trying to placate Daryl and Daryl can use that to his advantage. He makes a weak, wanting sound and feels a tremor run down his spine. He can get slick, try and coax this Alpha close. He can do it. He's done it before.

He hears the Alpha let out a soothing-sounding rumble and he ducks his head, breathing in deeply. The ash-smell gets closer and Daryl flinches when he feels a hand touch his cheek but the Alpha just shushes him again, drawing him close.

Daryl's body is warm from exertion, heated as he forces it to loosen and relax in the Alpha's hold. He thinks of Rick, how good it feels when the Alpha touches him, how much Daryl wants him whenever they're together. He shivers when he feels slick start to leak out of him, his body ready for a mating, a knot, and he hears the Alpha breathe in deeply and let out a little growl that sounds victorious.

Daryl smiles and wraps a hand around the Alpha's neck, claws digging in, and crushes his windpipe in his hand. With his other hand he grabs a handful of the Alpha's hair and jerks his head to one side, breaking his neck.

He steps away from the third corpse, breathing heavily. The air is heavy with the scent of Alpha, all of them able to smell him now, smell his slick and wanting him for breeding. Daryl snarls, daring any of them to come forward.

Two Alphas rush him at the same time and Daryl growls at them, shrinking back until his thighs hit the barricade and then another Alpha grabs his shoulders, holding him still as one of them grabs his neck and tightens his hands around his nape.

Daryl goes lax abruptly, breathing hard, and blinking rapidly as his vision slams back to normal, his teeth and claws retract. He can see properly now, see the crowd of riled Alphas and the two that are standing in front of him. One of them is huge, dark-skinned and red-eyes, the other a slighter man with yellowy hair and a sickly smirk.

The big Alpha has his hand around Daryl and he yanks him back to the center of the arena and forces him to his knees. "Not so tough now, are you?" he hisses, his free hand rubbing the bulge of his cock through his jeans.

Daryl's eyes go wide. He can't fight when he's like this – they know it, he knows it, the whole fucking audience knows it. Omegas are weak at the neck. The smaller Alpha tugs at his clothes and Daryl whines as he feels his bare skin hit the cool air. He's shaking harder now, sick to his stomach, because he failed. He fucking _failed_ and now – now what's going to happen?

Rick has faded from him and Daryl looks up to see him staring at Daryl, wide-eyed and helpless. He can't rush forward, these two Alphas will kill him without remorse. He's too weak to fight with Daryl and if he acts now Negan will _know_.

Daryl feels all of this through their bond and he lets out a weak whimper, nodding in understanding. He goes to his hands and knees on the ground.

_Daryl, don't!_

_I don't see any other way._

Rick's anger explodes across him, helpless and hot, and Daryl trembles again when the smaller Alpha kneels behind him. He can't make himself move, can't even bare his teeth or snarl at them. The Alphas around him are laughing now, mocking how weak he is even though he just killed three of their own. Alphas are so fucking _stupid_.

Daryl bites his lip as he feels the Alpha pawing at him, spreading him open to bare his slick hole. He hears the man give a low growl of desire and shudders. He doesn't know if he'll ever feel clean enough after this. This Alpha will be _inside him_ , touching a place only Rick is allowed to touch.

"Can't remember the last time I got my knot stuck in somethin' this good," the smaller Alpha says. The bigger one laughs and an idea comes to Daryl abruptly, half-formed and risky but there's no other way.

He curls his fingers and arches his back, letting out a weak moan that feels strained and forced even to his own ears. The Alphas laugh again. "Fuckin' whore for a good breedin'," the big one says, and Daryl whimpers.

He goes suddenly lax, collapsing onto the ground, and the bigger Alpha lets out a sound of surprise and his hand loosens on Daryl's nape. It's not much, he doesn't let go, but it's enough. Daryl snarls and his eyes flash gold as he turns and sinks his teeth into the man's leg, biting down as hard as he can. The Alpha howls and kicks at him, instinctively letting go, and Daryl shoves himself to his feet and turns on the smaller Alpha.

On his knees he has no hope of getting away. Daryl snarls and his voice feels heavy and thick and _powerful_ and he knows it's the Omega Voice and he knows he shouldn't be using it because _only bonded Omegas have one_ but maybe not everyone knows that. Maybe there's still a chance.

"Stay down," he commands, and the Alpha looks at him with wide eyes, trembling hard. His cock is exposed and Daryl smirks, and goes over to Dwight's limp body. He turns and regards the bigger Alpha. "On your _knees_."

"What the fuck is happening?" he hears another Alpha say, but he doesn't pay them any attention. He grabs Dwight's knife and walks up to the bigger Alpha and glares down at him. The man's eyes are wide and bright with tears, his scent thick with fear. Daryl leans down and grabs a handful of his hair.

"Ain't so tough now, are ya?" he growls, before he stabs the knife into the man's throat. The Alpha chokes, blood running hot and wet down his chest as he grabs at his neck and Daryl yanks the knife out and stabs him again in the throat, before he lets the Alpha go. Then, he turns to the smaller one. He kneels down in front of him.

He smiles, running a hand down the Alpha's chest, his touch light and soothing. The Alpha whimpers. "Shh," Daryl says, smiling wide enough to show his fangs. "Don't worry. I like you." The Alpha bites his lip and nods, and Daryl's hand wraps around his cock loosely, sliding down the Alpha's shaft until he touches the slight bulge where his knot would grow if he had managed to fuck Daryl.

The Alpha trembles, letting out a breathless moan despite his fear. "Must feel good," Daryl says, and the Alpha nods again. "There we go. Stay nice and hard for me."

The air is tense and silence, breathless with anticipation over what Daryl might do. He's outright killed the others that have tried but this is new. Daryl knows he has the most captive audience in the world. He squeezes his hand around the head of the Alpha's cock and lets out a little purr that makes the Alpha gasp.

Daryl smiles and blinks, his eyes losing their golden heat vision. "Good boy," he purrs, feeling the Alpha's cock twitch in his hand. "That's real nice. Know it's not what you really want, though, is it?" The Alpha shakes his head. "You know what _I_ want?"

The Alpha shakes his head again. His heart is flying when Daryl leans in and rests their foreheads together. He smiles, and, calmly as ever, puts the hand that still has the knife against the Alpha's cock. The Alpha's eyes go wide and his scent turns sour with fear. "I want to make sure you can't fuck anything ever again."

He twists the knife and digs it under the Alpha's cock, stabbing him in the thigh and, with a quick jerk, slicing the knife through his balls and the swell of his knot. The Alpha howls in pain, a loud shriek of distress as Daryl lets him go. The pool of blood is fast and startlingly large and Daryl laughs, standing up as the Alpha clutches at his crotch and doubles over, vomiting from pain.

He dies shortly after and Daryl laughs again, looking around at the gathered Alphas. He flings the knife away and it clatters across the ground and stops at Negan's feet. Negan's eyes are red, and the Alpha is bristling with anger.

"How did he _do_ that?" one Alpha whispers.

"Ain't fuckin' natural."

_Oh my God, Daryl, what have you done?_

Negan snarls, and it's heavy with Alpha Voice, and it rolls across the compound and makes everyone fall silent. Daryl feels it in his chest, a heavy push of displeasure, and he bites his lower lip and ducks his head when Negan steps into the arena.

Daryl trembles as Negan approaches him. He knows he can't fight this man, can't kill him otherwise all Hell will break loose. When he does kill Negan, it will need to be private and quick, and he still has a part to play. He lets out a whimper and curls in on himself, trying to act submissive and small as Negan comes to a stop in front of him.

Daryl drops to his knees, whining softly like Negan's Alpha Voice is affecting him more than others. He has to make it seem convincing. Negan had said himself he doesn't know what a bond feels like, wouldn't know if Daryl was faking it or not. He can still save this. He can still save _Rick_.

"Alpha," he whimpers, looking up. He can't make his eyes go gold but he feels them threading with it anyway, showing the Alpha his submission as best he can. Negan regards him coldly, dark with anger, and then he looks up and his eyes land on Rick.

Then, Negan grabs him by the nape and hauls him to his feet. "Come with me," he says, powerful voice like nails down Daryl's spine, and Daryl whines and lets Negan haul him away although he doesn't have much choice with the way Negan is holding him. "Rick, follow us."

Daryl whimpers and tries to reach out to Rick but he can't feel anything, like Negan's touch and his power are forcing them apart. He feels Rick following behind them as Negan leads him back to the room where Daryl and Rick sleep, and Negan shoves the door open and flings Daryl inside. Daryl falls to his knees immediately, wincing as he touches his bruised neck, and Rick follows them in and closes the door.

"You must think I'm pretty fuckin' stupid," Negan snarls. Daryl has never seen him so agitated, pacing back and forth with his hackles raised. He has his wire-wrapped bat and he points it at Rick. "I should kill you where you fucking stand."

Rick looks at him with wide eyes and Daryl snarls, lifting his head. He supposes the truth is out now, there's no point in hiding it.

"Negan, please," Rick says weakly, falling to his knees and raising his hands in supplication. Daryl can feel how afraid he is, how this is exactly what he'd been afraid of, and for once Daryl understands and knows how stupid this idea of his was and he wants to _run_.

"You can't kill him," Daryl says, whimpering when Negan's red eyes land on him. He shrinks in on himself and, instinctively, puts a hand to his stomach as though protecting it from the Alpha's wrath.

Negan's eyes go wide and the tension in the air snaps so abruptly that Daryl gasps, trembling under the Alpha's heavy gaze. "You -. He's pregnant?" Negan demands quietly, looking at Rick. Rick licks his lips and ducks his head and doesn't answer and Negan turns to Daryl again. "You let him _breed_ you?"

Daryl shakes his head, whimpering again and only half putting it on. He's not faking the fear, or the anxiety, but he thinks he might see just the hint of light on the horizon because if Negan thinks he's pregnant when he won't kill Rick. He won't risk Daryl going feral and losing the baby.

"I'm sorry," Daryl says, raising his eyes. "I'm sorry, Alpha, I couldn't help it. He… _forced_ me."

Rick's eyes snap to him and even though Rick must know he's faking, he can feel how much it hurts Rick to hear Daryl talk like that, to cheapen what they have to something as awful as what those Alphas had tried to do to him outside. But this is the only way, Daryl's sure of that.

"Is that true?" Negan asks, whisper-quiet, deadly-calm.

Daryl nods, biting his lip. "I just…I just wanted to breed so badly. I tried to – I wanted you to sire the pup, but Rick was…" He shakes his head again and lets out a broken-sounding, rough moan. "I'm so sorry, Alpha."

Negan growls lowly, but walks over to Daryl and puts a hand in his hair, tilting his head up. "I'm not angry with you, sweetheart," he says, and Daryl whines plaintively, rubbing his head against Negan's hand. "Can't help it that apparently my whole camp is full of rapists."

"I didn't _rape_ him," Rick snarls, looking disgusted at the idea. His anger is thorny and prodding at Daryl and Daryl whines, shrinking in on himself.

Negan growls and lets Daryl go, aiming his bat at Rick and Daryl whines, clutching his stomach as though in pain. His hands, still slick with blood, leave smears of it along his skin.

"As soon as that pup's out of him, I'm gonna slit you from dick to neck and fuck him 'fore your body's gone cold," Negan hisses, red with anger, and Rick shrinks away when Negan taps his weapon against Rick's forehead. "You're lucky I still need you, Grimes. If I had my way you'd have gotten yourself killed when you brought him here in the first place."

Then he leaves, slamming the door behind him with a ringing sound, and Daryl collapses in on himself, breathing harshly. The fear and adrenaline crash through him and he runs his hands over his face, stifling his cries as he sobs and trembles.

"Rick, I'm sorry," Daryl says, shaking his head. "I was so fuckin' stupid. I'm _sorry_."

"You did what had to be done," Rick says, his voice hard and curt. Daryl can feel his Alpha's displeasure and disgust over what he did. He has the blood of five Alphas on his skin and he claimed that his mate _forced himself_ on Daryl and Daryl hates himself, he didn't think he could hate anyone more than he hates Negan and yet -.

"I know you don't want to," Daryl says quietly, "but please…touch me?"

Rick's anger is palpable but the Alpha crawls over to him and rests a hand against Daryl's sweaty, heaving back. Even that touch feels so good that Daryl whimpers with it. He doesn't know what he would do if Rick ever left him. What happens when he finally steps over that line?

Rick sighs, and leans down to kiss the top of his head. He takes a breath and growls softly. "Let's get you cleaned up," he says, and then stands and sheds his clothes as Daryl walks over to the corner shower. Rick watches him as he cleans himself off and doesn't join him, his eyes raking over the already-healed stab wound on his arm, the slick on his thighs, the bruises on his neck put there by another Alpha's hands.

When Daryl is done he steps out of the shower and hesitantly makes his way over the nest, wrapping himself up in blankets that smell like the both of them and breathing deeply. He's still trembling with sorrow and fear, his breathing unsteady. Rick doesn't come to him.

"Negan knows," Daryl says when the silence stretches on to something unbearable. Even now he can feel how much Rick wants to touch him, to lay close to him and hold him and protect him from everything. But he can't. Daryl dug his own grave and now it's starting to rain and he's going to drown.

"About us," Rick agrees with a nod. "Not about the bond. I don't think."

"That's lucky, I guess."

Rick nods again, and then he sighs and goes to the nest but he doesn't plaster himself up against Daryl like he normally does. He's still bristly with anger and Daryl isn't sure that will ever fade. He tries to give his Alpha space but his mind is like a frantic animal, rubbing desperately up against its mate and letting out desperate pleas for forgiveness.

"I'm so sorry," Daryl says, closing his eyes. "Maybe I should have let 'em."

Rick snarls, his eyes flashing. "No," he says. "I would'a killed them."

"No you wouldn't've. You have much better control than I do."

"But I wouldn't have ever forgiven myself. And I can't let 'em touch you. No one. I…" Rick shakes his head, bringing his knees up to rest his elbows against them and rubbing at his eyes. "I keep thinking about it, playing the whole thing over and over. Maybe I should have just agreed to fight you."

"I don't wanna fight you," Daryl whispers.

"Negan thinks you're pregnant."

Daryl nods. "It was the only thing I could think of that would save your life."

"You're smart," Rick says with a nod. "But you're not pregnant."

"We can fix that."

"I guess we're gonna have to. But I'm still gettin' us out. We ain't gonna die in here."

Daryl smiles. "I trust you."

"I didn't…I didn't force you, did I? Sometimes I feel like I did. You never really had a choice. You don't even remember enough to have a choice."

"Well, we bonded. So I must'a chosen you at some point."

Rick lets out a weak sound of assent, rubbing his hand over his mouth and sighing heavily. "I think we should sleep," he says. Daryl nods – he can feel how tired Rick is, in body and soul. They need to rest as much as they can because Daryl is sure that this is just the beginning of a long road ahead.

He lays down on his stomach, wrapped up in the blankets, and sighs when he feels Rick lay down a little way away from him, not plastered to his back or touching him at all. He aches for his Alpha but understands that Rick needs space right now. Daryl hurt him, deeply, and the entire night has been draining for both of them. He wants Rick and needs him but he loves him enough to give him whatever space he can until Rick forgives him.

 _If_ Rick forgives him.

Daryl closes his eyes and turns his face away, and tries to sleep. He doesn't.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all I had a super fucked up idea when writing this but you would literally kill me so I went with my second-most fucked up idea. Enjoy!

"Do you think I'll feel it? When I get pregnant?"

"I'm not sure," Rick says. "Most women don't know until a few weeks in, or until they miss their period. Even then it can be hard to say until they start to show."

Daryl nods, pressing his lips together. He has his hands pressed to his flat stomach, stroking over the bare skin there beneath the blanket. "What about my Heat?" he asks.

Rick shakes his head. "Shouldn't be for another month or so," he replies.

"Then we have until then."

"I suppose."

Daryl winces. "God, I hate how much you hate me right now."

"I don't hate you," Rick replies, growling under his breath. Daryl can feel his anger, though, still as blistering hot as it had been before they went to sleep. Or at least Rick slept – Daryl hasn't been able to since the fight. Rick won't touch him, or soothe him, and it feels like a punishment. His Alpha is tactile and affectionate and Daryl feels cold and shaky in the room without Rick there to ease him.

"What should I have done?" Daryl asks, looking over to him. He curls up a little more tightly in the blankets and draws them around his body. "What would you have done, if you were me?"

Rick shakes his head. "I can't possibly answer that," he says, running his hands through his hair.

Daryl lets out a low growl, his eyes narrowing in displeasure. "Well, you could fuckin' try," he hisses, thorny with Rick's anger. "At least _try_ and see it through my eyes."

"You don't think I do?" Rick demands, raising his head and looking at him, his eyes flashing red. "Fuck, Daryl, how can you be in my head and not think I see yours just as easily? I know _exactly_ what you were thinkin', what you were plannin', and I still couldn't do a single damn thing to stop it. You almost got _raped_ right in front of me, and I just stood by and was gonna fuckin' let 'em. Negan almost _killed_ me and you saved my ass because that's what you've been doing from the start and I can't protect you anymore!"

Daryl glares at Rick, upper lip curling back. "That what you thought you were doin', all this time?" Daryl says quietly. " _Protectin' me_?"

"The only way I knew how to," Rick replies.

"How did you get me out?" Daryl demands. Rick's thoughts are a mesh but they come to stuttering halt at the question and Rick's eyes go wide. "You wiped my memories to stop me coming back but you never told me how you got me out. _How_?"

Rick looks away and Daryl lets out a low, powerful snarl, thick with Omega Voice. "Look at me," he demands, and Rick's eyes snap back to him as though Daryl physically yanked him there. "How did you get me out, before?"

"Daryl, don't make me answer that."

" _How did you get me out, Rick?_ "

Rick licks his lips and swallows harshly. He looks like he desperately wants to avert his eyes but Daryl's command is keeping him static. "I killed you," he confesses, and Daryl blinks, his eyes widening. "I…when you were sleeping, I gave you something to stop your heart. Called Simon and told him you'd hemorrhaged and died, that I couldn't save you."

The Alpha swallows hard again. "I knew you would heal eventually because I made sure you could."

Daryl can only look at him in shock for a long, long moment. Rick looks like he's in pain, whether that's from the memory of what he did to Daryl or anticipating the Omega's violent, angry reaction, Daryl can't be sure. Daryl doesn't feel anger – well, he does, but it's under the heavy weight of numb shock as he tries to process what exactly Rick just told him.

"You… _killed_ me?" Daryl repeats softly.

Rick nods. "It was the only way to get you out," he says. "And then…then Negan told me he didn't even bury you. Just had you taken out into the woods and _dumped_ and that's – I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't feel your thoughts even though I knew I wouldn't, and I knew you wouldn't stay dead but the fact that the bastard didn't even _bury_ you…" Rick's face twists up in revulsion and hatred and Daryl's Omega Voice must have worn off because he turns his face away and ducks his head. "I thought I might lose you anyway. But then I felt you again and I knew you were going to be okay, that you'd survive without me."

Daryl raises a hand to his head and remembers how much his first moments of conscious memory had hurt. Had that been Rick, cementing himself back into Daryl's head and finding the link that bonded them together again? Had it been his Alpha's rage, the red that Alphas see when their mates die, that had driven Daryl to such violence?

He can't be sure, but he thinks the answer must be 'Yes'.

"You got no right," Daryl says, his voice shaky, "no fuckin' right to do what you did to me." The anger sweeps in, then, powerful and tinted red, and Daryl snarls lowly. "You fuckin' _asshole_."

"It was the only thing I could do," Rick says, but his voice is plaintive and soft like he knows Daryl's anger is righteous and proper and he won't do anything to argue against it. He's tense with fear, his scent sour with it, and Daryl growls at him again. "He was going to take you that night, Daryl. Negan was going to take you away from me and fuck you. He told me so himself."

"I don't know if I can believe anything you say."

"I can show you."

"You can fake what you show me, too. Maybe none of this is real. Maybe I never bonded to you at all and you're just tricking me."

Rick's head snaps up and he looks at Daryl with wide eyes. Even though the anger Daryl can feel how much that accusation hurts Rick, pierces him right through the heart. He's viciously glad at that even though it hurts him too. He wants to _hurt_ Rick. He feels savage and wild and as predatory as he did in that ring of Alphas.

Rick swallows, his eyes bright, and turns his face away. "Believe what you want," he says, curling up on himself. He's like a frightened dog at the back of his cage, hackles raised and ears back.

Daryl huffs and turns away as well, hating how the cold seems to seep into his skin even though the blankets. He lays down on his side and curls up in a tight ball, his back to the wall so that even if Rick tried he couldn't cuddle up against him. Not that he thinks Rick will. There's a rift there, someone has taken a saw blade to the gentle feeling of the bond and run it ragged.

Daryl hates, openly and without direction. Or maybe in all directions at once. He hates Negan so much his mouth turns sour with it; he hates himself and his inability to remember anything; he hates Rick, and his secrecy, and his stubbornness to continue to do things or hide things for the sake of Daryl's 'safety'. He hates Eden, and the Saviors. He hates the fact that there are Alphas or Omegas at all.

It feels like his blood is turning to poison in his veins, and his saliva is acid, burning the inside of his mouth. He's trembling like his hatred is a physical pain, stabbing him in the heart. Can someone die from pure vitriol?

The silence is thorny and heavy in the dim room, Daryl feels like he's choking on vines and rotting meat. He knows he's waiting for Rick to break first – Alphas are weak and they always break first – but Rick is stubborn and just as hurt and Daryl doesn't know if he can outlast him. He doesn't know what he even wants anymore.

His Alpha is _there_ , and trying to protect him and Daryl knows he did it in some fucked-up ways but he _had_ gotten Daryl out. It isn't his fault that Daryl couldn't stay away, that by some instinct or fucked up lack of luck he ended up back here. It isn't Rick's fault that Negan is relentless and power hungry and Daryl's biology demands that he breed with a worthy Alpha. It's not even Rick's fault that they're bonded – Daryl understands enough to know that that's a two-way street. Rick could love him as much as he wanted and if Daryl didn't want him back, at _some_ point, then they wouldn't have mated and bonded like this.

He sighs, and knows sleep will continue to elude him as long as his thoughts are in such a mess.

Does it even matter? When all is said and done, does it _matter_ what Rick did to him if Daryl doesn't even remember it? Can he be angry over things he doesn't feel the effects of? Of course, he wants it to matter. He wants Rick to know that he can't just take away Daryl's free will like that, but Rick doesn't even have any free will of his own left and neither does Daryl so does it even _matter_?

Daryl sighs again, he can feel Rick's consciousness move against his like an agitated cat. "You know, I think it might have been better if you'd just let me die out there."

Rick sighs. "I don't want to live in a world where I don't know you," he replies, and Daryl huffs. "I want you, and I need you so much. Daryl, I love you. I know you can still feel that."

"Yeah," Daryl replies. "I can."

"I hate how useless I am," Rick continues. "How helpless I am. You were right, before. I _am_ weak. I'm weak and I'm stupid and I get too angry." He sighs again and Daryl lifts his head so that he can regard his Alpha. Rick has his head in his hands, rubbing over his face. He looks at Daryl and his eyes are bright and blue. "I don't expect you to forgive me for what I've done."

"Good," Daryl says. "Maybe I will, but I can't let myself forget." He pauses, licking his lips. "And don't you _dare_ make me forget again."

"I won't," Rick replies quickly, shaking his head. "I've learned my lesson."

Daryl sits up and sighs, running a hand through his hair. "From now on, now that I know how to use it, I'm going to make sure we're on the same page for everythin'," he says. "All of it. I can't…we can't keep just chargin' forward with our heads down and hopin' for the best. I don't _want_ to be angry at you. I don't want you to hate me."

"I don't hate you," Rick breathes. His voice is thick like he's trying to speak past the emotion stuck in his throat. Daryl can feel it – the desperate love and adoration for Daryl that Rick feels amidst the roiling mess of everything else. "I could never hate you."

Daryl smiles weakly. "I need you," he says, and Rick lets out a shaky exhale. "I promise I'll listen from now on. I'll obey."

Rick nods, licking his lips. His mind feels less agitated now, smoother when it brushes against Daryl's and Daryl meets him eagerly. His blood feels cooler now, the poison leaching from him slowly as he concentrates on how much Rick loves and adores him, the hatred soothed back, the dog in its cage wagging its tail in hesitant hope.

"I want you to fight," Rick says. He reaches out and lays a gentle hand on Daryl's thigh over the blankets and Daryl shivers. "I don't want you to lose that. You're my strength, you're the reason I'm still standin'. I don't want a soldier."

"Not a soldier," Daryl says, shaking his head. "A mate. An equal."

"Yes," Rick replies with an eager nod. He's smiling softly, warmth rushing from him and into Daryl like he's lit a candle in Daryl's chest. Daryl lets out a quiet, short purr that Rick matches deep in his chest. He squeezes his hand on Daryl's thigh gently.

"Lay down with me?" Daryl asks, pulling the halves of the blanket apart, and Rick nods and crawls over to him and Daryl lays down on his stomach, letting Rick blanket him and shivers when he finally starts to feel warm again. They cover themselves with the blankets completely, until it's dark and hot in the space.

It's intimate and quiet and Daryl finally feels himself relax, his brain calming in the presence of his Alpha. Rick's love and forgiveness covers him like warm water and he thinks he finally might be able to sleep. He reaches up and threads a hand through Rick's hair and purrs again when Rick presses a gentle kiss to his nape.

"Sleep, Daryl," Rick coaxes, his consciousness covering Daryl's like warm clothing. Daryl sighs, tilting his head to nuzzle against the rest of the bedding and breathing in their combined scents.

 

 

 

Daryl wakes up to the sound of the door opening and lifts his head from the nest of blankets, blinking blearily when food is thrown in and the door closes. He rumbles in complaint when Rick gets up, his heat leaving the nest as the Alpha pads over and gathers it before returning to Daryl.

Rick huffs a laugh, sitting down and showing Daryl his haul. "They're gonna start treatin' you a lot better now that Negan thinks you're pregnant," he says. There's raw meat there as always, but there's also fresh apples and tomatoes, and a small bottle of what looks like pills.

Daryl frowns and nods to them. "What are those?" he asks, taking a bite of the meat.

"Pre-natal vitamins," Rick says after looking at the label. Daryl blinks at him. "They're what you take when you're pregnant to make sure you're getting all the vitamins you need, for the baby."

Daryl smirks. "Ain't no baby in me," he says, and takes a bite of the tomato. It's plump and juicy and he moans at the fresh taste of it, slurping the juice from his fingers.

Rick nods, pressing his lips together. "Probably still a good idea to take them," he says, and opens the bottle and slides a pill out. Daryl rolls his eyes but takes it, tossing his head back and then finishing off the tomato so that he can force himself to swallow it with the food. He hands the rest of the meat and the apple to Rick.

"You have to eat, too," he says, his voice leaving no room for argument. "We both need to be strong."

Rick sighs but relents. The apple is a pinkish-yellow color and crunches when Rick takes a bite of it, swallowing it down with a gasp like he doesn't remember how to eat fresh food anymore. Daryl hums and finishes off his ration of the meat, purring lowly in his throat when Rick finishes the apple, core and all since there's nowhere else to put it.

"Do you think we can get outta here before my Heat comes?" Daryl asks.

Rick presses his lips together and wipes the back of his hand across his mouth. "I don't know," he says. "I'll need to plan, think of something. Why?"

"Negan will know when it hits that I'm not pregnant." Daryl bites his lip and shivers. "So you need to breed me."

Rick swallows hard enough that his throat clicks. "I don't think that's a good idea," he says hesitantly.

Daryl lets out a low, quiet sound. "Rick," he says, and then bites his lip and swallows. "I don't…I don't wanna go into Heat here." He rubs his hands against his thighs and feels a cold shudder run down his spine. "Please. Can you imagine what he'll do if I go into Heat?"

Rick's eyes flash red and he growls lowly. "Yes," he says.

"And you remember what he did to Spencer. What he had _me_ do to Spencer. He thinks you did the same thing to me. What do you think he'll do when he realizes there's no reason to keep you alive?" Rick growls again and Daryl whines, rubbing his cheek against Rick's shoulder. "Please, Rick."

"I want to," Rick confesses, turning his head to nuzzle against Daryl's hair. Daryl shivers and whines, feeling his Alpha's heat and breathing in his scent. It's a conditioned response, now, he thinks, to feel himself get warm and slick when he hears Rick growl like that. He can feel it starting to leak out of him, his body desperate to be mated.

"If you want to, I'm right here," Daryl whispers. "I want you to. I _need_ you to." Rick rumbles quietly again and Daryl lays down when he feels Rick's hands on him, pushing him down onto his stomach as the Alpha covers him.

"On your knees," Rick commands, voice right by Daryl's ear, and Daryl moans weakly and raises his hips as much as he can, bearing Rick's weight there as he feels the Alpha's hardening cock grind against his slick ass. "God, I can feel how much you want me. How can I say 'No' to that?"

Daryl whines, and he can feel how something in the sound tugs at Rick behind the eyes, sending a sharp rift of desire through his Alpha. He aches, deep in his core, his body desperate to be pierced and parted for an Alpha, to swell with his child. He has never felt so empty in his entire life. He knows, somehow, deep in that superconscious of his species, that he's fertile and ripe. If Rick mates with him now, he'll conceive. He _wants_ it.

Rick groans, trembling above him, and then Daryl closes his eyes tightly shut and winces when he feels Rick's cock pushing into him. It aches and burns because he's not stretched, but he's plenty slick and he can feel how hot and tight he is to Rick, how desperately Rick wants to mount and breed him in turn. This is what he's been _craving_ , to feel his Alpha, to feel that instinctive, primal drive to breed echoing in his mate's head. How can Omegas bear to breed for an Alpha they can't feel like this?

"Rick, _please_ ," Daryl gasps, tilting his head forward so his nape is bared. He supposes it doesn't matter what marks they might leave on each other now, now that Negan knows about them. Rick seems to agree, because he tilts his head and sinks his fangs into Daryl's nape and it makes Daryl go lax and loose and he moans when Rick slams all the way inside of him.

Rick's cock fucks against something that sends a sharp ache through Daryl's stomach that's almost painful. _There, right there_. Rick is as deep as he can go, fucking right up against the part of Daryl that will grow and swell with it. Daryl moans, arching his hips up to try and get Rick to stay there, clenching up tightly as he feels Rick shudder above him.

Rick's hips pull back and fuck in, another sharp ache spreading through Daryl's stomach hard enough to make him moan. "Fuck, that's it," Rick groans, pressing his forehead against Daryl's sweaty back. "Right there, sweetheart. You feel that?"

Daryl nods frantically, his hands fisting the blankets tightly as Ruck fucks out and into him again. Rick is trembling, shaking with exertion and Daryl drops to his elbows, his ass raised higher in the air and angled so that Rick can shove up to the balls of his feet and use all of his weight to fuck Daryl as deeply as he can.

"There's no way you won't be bred up after this," Rick growls, and Daryl moans, high-pitched and weak, his forehead pressed tightly to the blankets as Rick finds a sharp, punishing pace. The sound of their skin and bones crashing together is damn near glorious, the way Rick's cock stretches and forces its way into Daryl's body something heady and satisfying. Daryl is purring, unable to help himself, and he knows Rick can feel the vibrations of it through his whole body.

Rick grabs his flanks and grips tightly as a place to hold as he fucked Daryl brutally, driven by how much Daryl wants it, how badly his own instincts are demanding he fuck into and breed up the loyal, willing Omega pinned underneath him. Daryl moans loudly, wrecked and ragged in the throat, caught in the tidal wave of Rick's desire and easily swept under it.

 _Please, Alpha, please._ Rick growls, dragging his teeth across Daryl's shoulder and Daryl whines, clenching up tightly around him. One hand goes back to stroke his cock quickly, hand tightening at the head and rhythm matching the powerful movement of Rick above and behind him.

"Please," Daryl gasps, his eyes itching with gold as he moves with Rick, writhing beneath him like a wild, possessed thing. He wants it, he _wants it_ , his mouth is dry and his breathing is unsteady. Slick is running down his thighs, he's soaking to the bone with it.

Rick snarls and lets go of Daryl's flanks and thrusts into him hard enough to send him to his stomach and then Rick is kneeling over him, rutting his hips and Daryl gasps when he feels Rick's knot start to grow. It's huge and hard, stuck tight just behind his rim and Rick keeps moving, his cockhead rubbing mercilessly against that spot inside of him that makes him light up from his spine. He shrieks, biting down on the blankets and ripping at them with his free hand and Rick shudders. The place in Daryl that aches feels Rick twitching, and then Rick growls lowly and Daryl gasps when he feels his Alpha go limp, and the first hot shot of come spurts against his insides.

Rick hauls him up onto his knees again and bats his hand away, taking Daryl's cock in his tight grip and stroking quickly.

"If you come on my knot, it'll help you get pregnant," Rick whispers, his voice deadly-soft and quiet like a knife to the lungs. It pierces Daryl and hits him with how hard he wants it, his body is desperate to do anything to help him get pregnant. He groans and shudders when Rick twists his hand. "Come for me, Omega. Show me how bad you want me to breed you."

Daryl shudders, a whole-body thing. It's not the Alpha Voice but it hits him just as powerfully and he comes with a high-pitched whine, and he can feel his body clenching with it around Rick's knot and for every spasm he feels another load of come stain his insides. He's exhausted, so deeply satisfied that he collapses to his elbows again, instinctively angling his hips up so that Rick's come is pooling in his stomach where he knows a baby will grow.

Rick is purring, the sound loud and rumbling against Daryl's back. They're both breathing heavily, shaken by something more powerful than a mere mounting. Daryl whimpers and tilts his head forward and Rick bites him again, keeping him hobbled and limp, submissive to the feeling of Rick's knot and his teeth that are there to hold him still and keep him pinned to make sure he gets pregnant.

Rick smooths his hands down Daryl's back, cupping his hips and angling him for the best position to be mounted and bred, and kneels down behind Daryl so that they can both maintain the position as long as they can. Daryl is breathing heavily, trembling and hot and so fucking satisfied he doesn't remember how to speak.

He lets out a plaintive whine and turns his head, nuzzling against Rick, and moans into the kiss Rick grants him as he feels another hot spurt of come shoot into him. "I think…" He gasps, moaning weakly as Rick's cock twitches inside of him. "I feel like…that was it. Felt different."

Rick nods, rumbling softly. "I'm going to fuck you again," he says, a dark promise that sends a fissure of heat down Daryl's spine. "And again." He kisses Daryl's neck and Daryl whines quietly. "I'm going to mount you, and breed you up."

" _God_ , Rick…"

Daryl goes silent when Rick's hand flattens over his stomach, the Alpha's rumbling turning into a low purr. "My Omega," he says quietly, kissing Daryl's red cheek. "My mate. I love you so much."

Daryl smiles, purring softly in his chest, and turns his head so that Rick can kiss him again.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Childbirth scene for Maggie!

Maggie goes into labor the next day so Simon comes and takes Rick away. They don't bothering showering, and Daryl can't help purring to himself as he smells Rick's scent on him and traces his fingertips over the marks Rick left on his stomach, hips and neck.

He startles when he gets a vision as Rick enters the office where Maggie is giving birth. He grits his teeth at her screams, wincing when it grates along Rick's nerves like iron filings. He tries to soothe his Alpha as best he can but he can smell the tension in the room, the air thick with Maggie's pain and Glenn's worry seeping in from just beyond the door.

Maggie is a pretty woman, even soaked with sweat and flushed from exertion. She has eyes the color of broken green glass and her short brown hair is plastered tight to her face and neck. She's aching for her Alpha, even Daryl can tell that, and screams for him whenever she gets a breath.

Rick shushes her, and steps between her legs and pushes up the sheet that someone had placed over her. There's another woman in the room that Daryl recognizes as the petite blonde that he'd seen speaking with Negan before. He thinks he can see the family resemblance in their jaws and the shape of their faces. Maggie's sister.

"Beth, keep her cool," Rick tells her, and she nods and goes to Maggie's head with a damp cloth and smooths it over her sister's forehead. "You're doin' real good, Maggie. I'm just gonna have a look, okay?"

Maggie whimpers, her fingers clenched tightly in the arms of the chair. "Where's Glenn?" she demands breathlessly, and Daryl can feel how Rick's heart aches for her. For some reason Alphas aren't allowed in for the birth of their pups. He senses that it's a big deal that Rick is even there.

"He's just outside," Beth says, her voice high and sweet. "He'll come in when you're done."

"Ah, _fuck_!" Maggie shrieks, tossing her head back as another contraction wracks her slim body. Through Rick's eyes, Daryl can see between her legs, the flesh swollen and parted to make way for a baby. He can see the top of its head, coated in blood. "Fuck, I can't…" She's sobbing openly, wretched with pain.

 _Rick, let me_ , Daryl says, pushing himself to the front of Rick's thoughts. Rick moves over with a low rumble, and Daryl feels himself take over Rick's voice. There's a thread of Omega in there, different from the Alpha Voice, when Rick speaks;

"You just gotta push, Maggie. It's okay. We're all here for ya." It's Rick's voice but Daryl's accent and Daryl can see Maggie's thighs go still from their shaking. He's not commanding her but some deep-seated instinct in him is telling him that women and Omegas are soothed in the presence of their own. She whimpers and clenches up and Daryl sees her part another inch, baring more of the pup. "There we go. Doin' so well, darlin'. Don't even need me here."

Maggie huffs a laugh, rolling her eyes and then closing them when Beth puts the damp cloth on her forehead again. She grits her teeth and her knuckles go white as another contraction hits her. Daryl smells the blood, tastes it on his tongue, and then she pushes again and the head of the baby slides out and into Rick's hands.

Rick has a blanket wrapped around his hands so that he doesn't touch the pup's skin outright, knowing that his scent on the child will mar it's natural imprinting instincts. "C'mon, Maggie. Done the worst of it now. Beth, let Glenn in."

Beth's eyes go wide. "That's not allowed -."

"I don't care. Let him in," Rick commands, Alpha Voice thick now, and Beth lets out a quiet sound, ducking her head and rushing to obey. Glenn's Alpha scent is thick with worry and sour but Maggie looks over to him with another soft cry, body shuddering.

"Glenn," she says, reaching weakly for him.

"I'm here," Glenn says, his eyes wide and glowing red. Daryl can feel how Rick bristles at the presence of another Alpha, like Glenn is interrupting something sacred, but he fights the instinct down. This is not his mate, after all, and this is not his pup. Glenn has a right to be here. Glenn smooths a hand through Maggie's sweaty hair as she shrieks and loses herself to another contraction.

"Shoulders now," Rick says, handling the pup gently as Maggie pushes again and the shoulders come out. The baby is already starting to cry, a hearty wail coming from it as Maggie pushes one more time and Rick gives a gentle tug, and the baby parts from its – his – mother. The baby shrieks again and Rick instantly hands him to Beth.

"A boy," Rick tells Maggie and Glenn. Maggie is still crying, her pretty face tacky with tears as she struggles to sit up.

"Let me see him," she demands. Beth brings the baby back, wrapping in the blanket, his face clean. Rick beckons Glenn over.

"Here," he says, and takes the umbilical cord in his hands and raises it to Glenn so that the other Alpha can take it. Glenn looks at him with wide eyes. "Sever it," he commands, and Glenn licks his lips and then sinks his teeth into the cord, ripping it in two. Daryl can feel Rick's pride when he watches him do it, and puts a hand on Glenn's shoulder. "Good job."

Glenn gasps, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, and looks at Rick with wide eyes. "Thank you," he says heavily, soaked with gratitude. "Thank you for letting me in. I owe you."

Rick's mind flashes with something like opportunity, but it's quickly smothered before Daryl can look at it more closely. "Beth, we should go," Rick says, and he takes Beth by the shoulder and guides her out, leaving Glenn and Maggie alone with their son.

Negan is outside of the door and Daryl stifles a low growl, hoping that his anger doesn't show on Rick's face. Negan grins at them and holds a hand out to Beth, who meekly goes to him and allows him to wrap an arm around her.

"How is she?" he asks.

Rick nods. "Healthy," he says. "Glenn's in there with her now. It's a boy."

"Maybe that'll be you, soon," Negan says to Beth, and Daryl feels Rick's revulsion through their bond. "Alright, Rick, away with you."

Rick hesitates, but obeys. Daryl feels himself get tense with anticipation as he watches through Rick's eyes, as Rick goes back to their room. He's on his feet when Rick opens the door and rushes over to him, catching his Alpha in an eager kiss.

Rick sighs against his lips, running a hand through Daryl's hair. He stinks of childbirth, blood and flesh and something thin and slick, and Daryl hums, rubbing his face against Rick's chest. "Why do you feel like this?" he asks, pressing against Rick's chest as though able to feel some physical lump in the form of Rick's sadness.

Rick shakes his head. "Negan likes to be the first Alpha in the room with a baby," he says. "It helps them imprint on him. All of the children have imprinted on Negan. It's not as strong as Omega bonds but it's…effective."

Daryl frowns, pulling away. "But he lets you in there," he says. "He let Glenn in there."

Rick nods. "I have to be there, I'm the only one with medical training and the scent of an Alpha _does_ soothe somewhat," he says. "But I never touch the kids so they never imprint on me. Or if they do, it fades away by the time Negan gets there. Glenn…" He shrugs and shakes his head. "I don't know. He might force a quarantine to make sure."

Daryl hisses. "That's fucked up," he says, biting the words out. Then, "Is that why you sent Carl away? So he wouldn't imprint?"

Rick shakes his head, his sadness sharpening to a quick point before Daryl's presence can soothe it away. "Carl was long gone before I came here," he says. His hands are brushing idly across Daryl's neck and shoulders.

Daryl lets out a soft purr at the touches. "Our children will be loyal to you," he says, and even through Rick's sadness and indecision he can feel the warm glow of pride and desire flicker in Rick's chest. "Would you like that?"

"I don't want an army," Rick says, but it is a fact of all Alphas that they desire dominance and control. The idea of Daryl breeding him a pack of Omega children loyal and imprinted on Rick pleases him, he can't deny that.

Daryl hums, nuzzling at Rick's bared throat again and smiling when he feels his Alpha's breath catch, his hands going rough for a moment on Daryl's flanks. "She probably feels so empty," he whispers. He can hardly stand it after Rick's knot goes down and his Alpha pulls out of him. After being full, parted and stuck on his Alpha's knot, it drives Daryl crazy to think of that but multiplied by a thousand. "How soon after childbirth can an Omega breed again?"

"Omegas are different than women," Rick replies, his voice lower now, breathless. "I'm not sure. A few months?"

"I heal fast."

"Daryl -." Rick pushes him back towards the nest and Daryl obeys with a soft whimper, falling to his knees as Rick approaches him. He puts his hands on Rick's thighs and looks up at him as Rick threads a hand through his hair. "You can't keep saying things like that to me."

Daryl licks his lips and smirks, showing his teeth. "I like knowing how bad I affect you," he says with a low purr. With the way he's kneeling Rick can't hide his desire from Daryl at all, even if he wanted to, even if the bond wasn't urging him onto his hands and knees, Rick desperate to kneel behind him and mount him and breed him full.

Rick growls and tightens his hand in Daryl's hair, his eyes glowing a dull red. "Come here," he demands, and tugs Daryl back onto his feet, before he crushes Daryl against the wall, kissing him breathless. Daryl moans, spreading his legs and digging his nails into Rick's back.

Rick tugs on Daryl's hair and sinks his teeth into Daryl's neck and Daryl moans, raking his nails up as his body goes tight and clenches hotly, slick leaking from his ass as Rick starts to grind against him. Rick's free hand runs down his back and Daryl's eyelids flutter as he feels Rick's fingers go under the waistband of his sweats and drag through the slick there.

He whines when Rick sinks a finger inside of him, stretching him out around the one finger. It feels good but it's not enough, he needs _more_ – and it's a need Rick knows, Rick senses, and is purposely denying him like the asshole he is.

Rick laughs, licking over the raw, new bite mark. "Patience, Omega," Rick growls into Daryl's ear, making him shiver. The scent of Daryl's thick is coating the air and Rick's eyes are a bright red now, glowing with the Alpha imperative to mate.

Daryl whimpers, licking his lips, and gasps when Rick kisses him and slides another finger inside of him. "I want to run," Daryl whispers, trembling with the urge to shove Rick away and flee. It's a new feeling, one he doesn't quite understand.

Rick growls, his hand tightening in Daryl's hair. "Where will you run, hmm?" he purrs, predatory and proud as Daryl whimpers again. "I'll chase you. No matter where you go." Daryl's stomach tenses up and he feels himself clench tight around Rick's fingers, fresh slick leaking out around him. His head feels like it's on fire.

The door opens suddenly and Rick lets out a low, animal snarl that gets cut short when he realizes who's at the door. It's Negan, and he has Glenn by the scruff of the neck. Daryl whines when Rick pulls his fingers out and steps away from him, putting his body between Negan's assessing eyes and Daryl.

Negan drops Glenn unceremoniously on the floor, looking at Rick like he's a favored child throwing a particularly amusing tantrum. "Don't let me interrupt," he says, but his eyes are hard when they look at Daryl and Daryl whines again, sinking to his knees and turning his face away. "Seems like Daryl's warmed up to you, at least."

Rick licks his lips, anger flashing hotly in him, and says; "Man's got needs. May as well get the little bitch used to being fucked."

Negan's eyes flash red again and his mouth twists in a scowl, his hand tightening on his bat. "Careful, Rick, you're walkin' a very thin line," he warns. His anger weighs heavily on Daryl's shoulders and Daryl lets out another quiet whine, raising his eyes and knowing they're shining with gold.

"Alpha," he says, trying to make his voice pleading and plaintive like he knows affects Rick so well. Even now he can feel Rick reacting to his tone, desperate to soothe him even though Daryl's distress is completely fake. "Please, let me out. I -."

"You what?" Negan says sharply. "Think I'm gonna set you loose with a pup in you and the blood of my men on your hands? No, you're staying in here." He points his bat towards Daryl and Daryl flinches, curling his shoulders in. "Might teach you a lesson on who to spread your legs for next time."

"Alpha, please!" Daryl begs, but Negan is already shutting the door, leaving Glenn in a heap in the room. At once Daryl sheds his plaintive pose and pushes himself to his feet, following Rick as Rick rushes over and helps Glenn upright.

Glenn groans, wincing and holding his head. "Fuck," he says, shaking his head. "I touched him. My son. Negan saw. I -." There's blood on his face, dripping down from his temple where Daryl can only assume Negan hit Glenn as hard as he could. "Shit."

"It'll be okay," Rick says. Daryl can't imagine how Glenn feels right now but he can feel Rick's low anger churning in his gut – both righteous anger at Glenn's treatment and something more base and instinctive, hating another Alpha in his den and around his Omega even though Glenn still reeks of his own mate's scent and that of his son.

"We have to get them out of here," Daryl whispers and Rick looks up at him. "Glenn. Maggie. Their kid. Beth if we can manage it. We have to get them all out of here, Rick."

Rick bites his lip, and nods as Glenn groans again, wincing as he touches his temple. "Let's get you cleaned up," Rick says, and helps Glenn to his feet. If Glenn can smell them all over each other – and chances are very high that he can – he doesn't comment, and lets Rick help him over to the shower. Rick undresses him quickly and Daryl grabs a blanket, wincing at the stench of mated Alpha-Omega on it, and drags it over when Glenn is clean and drapes it around his shoulders.

"I'm so sorry," Glenn says, shaking fingers taking the blanket as he looks at Daryl with wide, dark eyes. "I'm so sorry I brought you back here. I'm sorry you're both…" He looks at Rick and winces. "All you've ever done is try and help me'n'Maggie and I -."

"It's forgiven," Rick says, resting his forehead against Glenn's temple. He has a hand at Glenn's nape, running through his hair gently and Daryl feels through the bond that Rick is trying to soothe but also assert himself over Glenn. He's the Alpha here, the one in charge, the one who'll be calling the shots if Glenn is to stay with them. He needs Glenn's loyalty, in whatever method Alphas give and receive that loyalty.

Glenn nods, whining softly as he submits to Rick's touch and Daryl feels Rick's satisfaction, some unspoken thing passing between the Alphas as Glenn looks at both of them. "We're going to help each other," Rick says quietly, and Glenn nods. "Good. Get some sleep. They usually bring Daryl food around this time."

"How long do you think Negan will keep me here?" Glenn asks.

"Until the imprint wears off," Rick replies. "Maybe a few days."

"We don't have long, then."

"No," Rick says, and looks to Daryl, He manages a small, sad smile. "But then again, we never do."


	12. Chapter 12

They bring Daryl food and more pre-natal vitamins. They don't bring anything extra for Glenn and Rick – Simon seems surprised when he sees Glenn in the room with them, a flash of something like anger and sorrow running across his face before he throws the raw meat and fresh vegetables in with the little bottle of pills and closes the door.

The food stretches thinly between the three of them but Daryl insists that both Rick and Glenn receive at least a little of the food. Spencer's bones are still in a corner and Daryl chews on them until they crack and eats the marrow out of them, swallowing down the pre-natal vitamin with another hunk of bloody meat, and gives the rest to the two Alphas.

Glenn keeps his distance, still skittish and afraid around Daryl. With good reason, Daryl thinks. After all, Daryl did try to kill him when they first met and he hasn't exactly chilled out since then, and of course, Rick is also in the room with them. Glenn stinks with fear whenever Daryl looks at him, as though if Rick sees Daryl looking he'll get jealous and rip Glenn's throat out simply for being there.

It's a strong instinct, the revulsion at having something in his nest that isn't him, his Alpha, or one of their pups, but Daryl forces himself to remain calm and Glenn keeps one of the blankets and sleeps away from the nest proper, curled up on himself. At least he's clothed so he isn't going to be too cold.

Daryl can feel how tense Rick is, how much he doesn't like Glenn being there even though Daryl also feels Rick's affection for the other Alpha. Glenn is a loyal one, a friend of Rick's Daryl would assume, and Rick doesn't have any problem with him in general but Daryl is his mate, at his most fertile and vulnerable, and Rick is compelled to shield Daryl from any predatory eyes just as Daryl feels the urgent, desperate need to mark his territory on Rick in the form of licks and kisses and small bites he puts to Rick's neck and shoulders whenever he can.

"Where does Negan take the children, do you know?" Rick asks Glenn at one point.

Glenn lets out a helpless sound and shakes his head. "I think they stay with the mothers most of the time, until they can walk. Negan visits them every day. They're kept in a different part of Eden, where the gardens are."

Rick lets out a low curse. "It'll be heavily guarded," he says with a shake of his head.

Glenn nods, humming lowly. "Luckily there aren't that many of them."

Rick looks up. "What do you mean?"

"You were stuck in here. About three months ago…just after you went red – there was a fever, a sickness. Spread through the whole place. Wiped almost half of us out. There's only my son, Enid, and Jessie's kids left."

Rick snarls under his breath and Daryl's breath catches, sorrow and anger flooding him like a shot of pure ice. Rick's fists clench and Daryl can't imagine being there at all those children's births, holding them as they took their first breath and wailed their first cry and opened their eyes for the first time, and not even knowing that they're dead until now.

Then Rick clenches his jaw and breathes out, heavily, through his nose. "Enid's almost breeding age," he tells Daryl lowly. "And Jessie's kids are both boys. Ten and sixteen, I think." Glenn nods as though in agreement. "So they can walk, at least. If we get 'em out, they can follow us."

"We should just kill Negan," Daryl hisses. "I can make the Alphas fall."

Rick is already shaking his head. "I want him dead," he says. "I do. Desperately, I do. But it ain't that simple. We can't stay here. We won't ever be free until we're gone."

"How do we even get out of here?" Glenn asks with a helpless shrug, his eyes wide. "There's one door, one exit straight out into the center. We get there and we're sitting ducks for the guns. Not to mention the gates. They lock at night now."

Rick nods. "Fightin' our way out ain't an option," he says, and Daryl growls although he's pleased that at least Rick seems to be trying to think of a way out – at first, if it had been on his mind, he had kept silent about it, but now Daryl is in his head and Glenn is in the room so he has to speak and has to share. Daryl appreciates that.

"What if I…fake somethin'?" Daryl asks, cocking his head to one side. "Some kinda medical thing. Somethin' you can't fix."

Rick shakes his head. "There ain't much I can't fix here," he says. "I practically brought you back from the dead. Negan has resources and he won't let you out of the facility if he can help it."

Daryl bites his lip, trying to think.

"What if I lie?" he says, looking back at Rick. "What if I tell him I remember where I came from, where you found me, and I tell him I have siblings? Other Omegas – he'll want to go out and look. He'll have to let me lead him there."

"I mean…maybe," Rick says, "but we've been here for years, Daryl. Scoured the place from chimney to underground. There ain't no one else around, and if there even was, they wouldn't stick around for long. And even if _that_ worked, he wouldn't let all of us go."

"What if I make him?" Daryl asks quietly. "Use the Omega Voice, force him to let you out?"

"You think it'll work on an Alpha that strong?" Glenn asks, his voice weak. "I mean…Negan's not just an Alpha, man – his Voice is fuckin' _brutal_. And that's a – that's a mental thing. Genetic, psychological, whatever you wanna call it. He isn't just _any_ Alpha."

"Glenn's right," Rick says with a nod. "I know you're strong, and I know you made those Alphas in the fight listen to you, but you were using me so much and the effects might not last if we're too far away from each other, if we can't feel each other anymore."

Daryl frowns. "There's a range limit on our bond?"

Rick shrugs. "Are you willin' to take that chance?"

"Well, _kinda_ ," Daryl says with a roll of his eyes. "Don't see much other option."

"I…have an idea," Glenn murmurs after a moment, biting his lip when Daryl and Rick turn to regard him. He shrinks in on himself, clutching the blanket tighter, and tilts his head just a little to bare his throat to Rick and Rick lets out a quiet rumble. "It's risky, and if it goes wrong we are _all_ royally fucked, but it's worth a shot, I think."

Rick raises an eyebrow. "What's the idea?"

Glenn smiles.

 

 

"I don't like this," Rick whispers, shaking his head. Daryl hums, turning his face to nuzzle against Rick's cheek. Rick has always slept on top of him like this but his touches seem more protective and possessive than usual, he has a leg slung over Daryl's hips, his head resting against Daryl's cheek, one arm laid across his and their fingers laced together. His other hand is underneath Daryl, pressed gently against his stomach.

"It's a good idea," Daryl says after a moment, keeping his voice as quiet as possible so as not to wake Glenn. Glenn is asleep in the corner of the room, away from them, and it's nightfall now in Eden. The lights are off, the room is almost black, and it feels intimate and hot in the darkness.

Rick rumbles and Daryl purrs when he feels Rick's consciousness brush up against him. He gasps when he sees a road melt into view in front of him, with high walls stretching up in front of him. They're ragged and sharp, piercing the sky. There's a sign on the front but he's too far away to read it. Daryl winces as he's abruptly yanked backwards and tries to memorize the turns and directions before he finds himself back in the room, pressed under Rick.

"It's the last place I saw Carl," Rick tells him. "If anything happens to me, find him. Find this place. They'll take care of you there."

"Ain't nothin' gonna happen," Daryl replies. He squeezes Rick's fingers gently. "We're gonna get outta here."

"Still," Rick says, insistent. "Promise me."

Daryl nods and Rick purrs softly, pressing a gentle kiss to Daryl's cheek. "I need you," he says, his voice little more than a sigh, and Daryl nods again, shifting his weight to free Rick's hand and Rick slides his soft shirt up, fingers tracing over the scars on his chest before they reach the place where the metal touches, just shy of his heart.

Rick bites the back of his neck, hard, and Daryl's fist flies to his mouth so that he can bite on his knuckles to stifle his groan. Rick's pleasure washes over him like a wave of heat and Rick yanks his hand away from Daryl's so that he can push their clothes out of the way, freeing his cock and baring Daryl's hole. Daryl isn't leaking slick but he's getting there, his body freefalling into the mounting position at Rick's bite.

His Alpha is desperate, demanding, when he grabs his cock and presses it against Daryl's tight hole. Daryl pulls his knees up and lowers himself to the ground, head buried in the crook of his arm as Rick slides into place above and behind him. Rick doesn't give him time to breathe, let alone relax, before he's pushing his cock inside of Daryl, forcing him to split and part for his Alpha.

Daryl lets out a shaky whimper, biting down on his knuckles hard enough that his fangs split the skin and draw blood.

Rick's teeth tighten on the back of his neck, sending lightning shards down Daryl's spine, and one of his hands slides up Daryl's chest to tease at a nipple, his other arm curling under Daryl's shoulder and tightening to hold him still as he starts to thrust – smoothly in despite Daryl's lack of readiness, and then back out, in and back out. He growls and Daryl shudders, tense on the tripwire, and then he sighs when he feels Rick's pleasure and love rub against him like a physical thing.

His body gives, just a little, losing the tension for long enough that Rick can thrust as deeply in as he can, hips rolling as Daryl starts to feel himself get slick. He moans quietly, flattening his bloody palm over his mouth to stifle his sounds as Rick fucks him with a precision and brutality so fine it's almost desperation.

 _I love you_ , Rick whispers to him through their bond, because he can't bear to open his jaws and release Daryl's neck. Daryl is lax and trembling beneath him, aching where Rick is fucking against that dully sensitive place inside of him, and he's not even sure what he needs, what he wants from his mate right now.

Daryl sucks in a breath and lets it out through his nose, groaning softly because Rick is shoving everything he can into Daryl, physically and through their bond, like he intends to soak and brand his soul into Daryl's chest, carve it into the metal in his shoulder, and mark Daryl as deeply as he physically can. He can feel, in Rick's messy whirl of thoughts, the Alpha's surety that he isn't going to make it out alive.

He growls, closing his eyes and baring his teeth behind his hand.

 _You're going to make it out_ , he snarls, and works his free hand up to wrap around where Rick's arm is, under his shoulder. He digs his nails in and Rick whines against his nape. _If I have to kill 'em all, you're coming with me. All or nothin'._

Daryl whines as Rick growls and sinks his teeth, and Daryl shudders when he feels the skin finally split, hot blood leaking out around Rick's mouth and down the sides of his neck. His body goes tense and tight and Rick snarls, fucking in as deeply as he can go. Daryl can feel his knot forming, growing hard and big inside of him. Rick pulls his teeth out and licks over the wound, breathing heavily. Daryl can feel how badly he's shaking.

Rick pulls back just a little but Daryl follows him, shoving himself up to his hands so that he can turn his head and nuzzle under Rick's bloody mouth. He licks his Alpha's jaw, tasting his blood there, and lets out a weak purr that he hopes is soothing. Rick makes a soft, rumbling sound back at him, plastering himself to Daryl's back and rubbing his cheek against Daryl's.

Rick's hand slides down his stomach but Daryl stops him before he can touch Daryl's cock. Daryl isn't hard, even though Rick's pleasure is thick and strong in his lungs. It feels distant, his own need. He sighs, closing his eyes as he feels Rick starting to come, and hums softly.

"Don't," he says. "I don't need it."

"I'm a monster," Rick whispers in reply. "But whatever happens, know that I love you. I _love_ you."

Daryl smiles, strained and sad in the darkness, and takes Rick's hand and rests it over his heart. "I can feel that," he says. "Do you feel me?"

"Yeah," Rick says, voice shaking.

"I don't remember how I loved you," Daryl says, turning his head and kissing at Rick's sweaty throat. He hears the Alpha gives a quiet, sad sigh. "But I did. I do. I will."

Rick's free hand cups Daryl's cheek and turns him so that Rick can kiss him. It's an awkward angle and they can't maintain it, so Daryl kisses his Alpha and then lays down on his stomach, Rick's arms wrapped tight around his chest and his neck as Rick covers him, and then Daryl pulls a blanket over them both.

 

 

 

Rick mounts him one more time that night, biting into the raw, red mark he left behind and working his hand over Daryl's cock until Daryl trembles and comes on his knot, biting his fist to muffle the sound and not wake Glenn. Then they sleep, or at least try to, too buzzed and anxious to manage more than a few minutes at a time.

When the lights flicker up, they all stir and Rick and Daryl re-dress themselves. Glenn smiles weakly at them, pushing himself to his feet.

"You ready for this?" he asks.

Daryl frowns, and holds out his arm. He bites into the tender flesh of his wrist until the skin splits and he starts to bleed. "You guys sure this will work?"

"You're a universal donor," Rick says. "Blood type O-negative. We won't get sick."

"But will it _work_?"

"I guess we can only hope."

Daryl nods, and waits as Glenn and Rick bite into their own wrists as well. The blood wells up thickly, spurting from the artery, and Rick grabs Daryl's arm and rubs their skin together so the blood mixes. Daryl has already started to heal so he re-opens the wound, whining at the taste of Rick's blood on his skin, and rubs their arms together again, trying to force as much of his blood into Rick's arm as he can.

Then, he does the same with Glenn. Glenn's face is pale with fear and pain and he winces when Daryl scoops up some of his own blood and works it into the raw-looking bite on Glenn's arm. He does it several times, wanting to be sure, and then wipes his wrist on his clothing, the wound already healed over.

"We should wait a minute," Glenn says, nodding to his and Rick's arms. "Just to see."

"Could take a while," Daryl says. "If it works at all."

"We can wait," Rick replies, nodding to Glenn. After all, their plan hinges on this first step. If Daryl's blood can heal, and he can pass that onto Rick and Glenn, then they will be able to fight and keep fighting as he does. They can still die – probably, Daryl had died already, after all – but they would at least be able to take a knife or a bullet wound and carry on.

He feels a weird, warm pride, knowing that his blood has tainted the two Alphas. It's like a blood oath, pack loyalty at its purest. He should make anyone not-blood share with him anyway, bind them to him with that debt of immortality.

He smiles, licking his lips.

Glenn looks down at his arm, eyes widening when he sees that the wound has already started to scab over, much faster than it would have done on its own. "Holy shit," he whispers, touching it and wincing. "Rick, is yours -?"

"Yeah," Rick says, looking down at his arm. Daryl can feel the dull ache of his mate's wound through their bond but it's already fading, even when Rick touches it he doesn't feel the pain. It isn't quite healing yet, but it doesn't hurt, Rick doesn't _feel_ it. That's a start.

Daryl leans in close to him and rubs their jaws together, before he whispers in Rick's ear; "Imagine how strong you'll be if I give you more." He doesn't miss how Rick's eyes flash red, the thing that makes him an Alpha stretching out and roaring with delight at being powerful, with a worthy Omega at his side and an army of loyal men and children at his command. Rick doesn't desire that kind of power, he isn't Negan and never will be, but his Alpha brain demands obedience and loyalty and love and Daryl has the power to give him all of that tenfold.

Rick growls, turning to face Daryl. Their noses brush together and Rick's hand twitches like he desperately wants to fist a hand in Daryl's hair and mount him all over again. "You keep saying things like that to me," Rick says lowly, "I'm starting to think you like the idea just as much."

"I don't want to rule the world," Daryl says with a smirk. "But you do. A small part of it, at least. And I rule you. So, I win."

Daryl reaches down and grabs Rick's injured arm, squeezing over the wound tightly. Rick doesn't even flinch. There's no sign of pain on him or in him at all. Daryl smiles and leans in for a kiss.

"My Alpha," he purrs, smiling at the flash of red in Rick's eyes. He looks over at Glenn, who is still staring at his wrist. It's completely healed over now, nothing left but a silvery mark in the shape of his teeth. He meets Daryl's gaze with wide eyes. "Satisfied?" he asks, and Glenn nods.

Daryl nods back, and feels his vision go sharp and gold, so that he only sees heat. Glenn and Rick are shining a brilliant white, lit up from Daryl's blood and abilities inside of them. Daryl smiles and walks up to the door, banging his fist against it three times.

"Open up!" he yells, his voice thick with Omega Voice, ringing out in the otherwise silent room. He can feel the tension in Rick and Glenn, feel their desire to follow and obey the powerful Omega in the room. His throat is burning and tight with anticipation, his fangs bared, eyes golden. "I want to come out."


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Massacre!

An Alpha Daryl doesn't recognize opens the door for him, breathing hard like he'd sprinted his way there. Daryl smiles and lets out a quiet purr, reaching for him and pulling him into the room. The Alpha flinches, his scent sour with fear as Daryl nuzzles against his neck.

"Shh, don't be afraid," Daryl whispers. He smells sweet and young when he licks over the Alpha's throat, and then sinks his teeth in. The Alpha gasps, growling and grabbing at Daryl, and then Rick and Glenn come forward and yank on his arms, pulling him back as Daryl tightens his jaws and bites down, jerking his head back and ripping out the Alpha's throat.

"Cover your ears," Daryl tells Glenn and Rick, spitting out the wad of flesh. He reaches back behind himself and scoops up the slick and Rick's come still leaking out of him, a stain he can't be rid of even if he'd wanted to. He sees Rick and Glenn obey and feels Rick seal off most of their bond.

He growls, wanting to claw at the bond and demand Rick return to him, but for this to work Rick can't be affected by what Daryl is about to do.

He pulls the door open and kicks the Alpha's body in front of it so it can't close all the way if there is some automatic thing on it. He smears his slick against the door and just inside the hallway, and then retreats so that he, Glenn and Rick are not immediately visible in the room.

Then, he howls – it's a wrecked, needy sound. The sound of an Omega in Heat, calling for a breeding Alpha. He feels the instinct of it, pulling on the feeling of his need and his slick whenever Rick touches him or mounts him. He gathers up the desire in his chest like a ball, tugging on it and forming it, and pushes it out through his throat as he screams and begs, his voice echoing down the hallway for any Alpha to hear.

He grins when he hears the door fly open on the other end, the heavy feet of many Alphas running to him. He screams again, desperate and raw as he can make it, and wills his body to reek of slick and heat, enticing the Alphas forward so that they all come barreling in despite whatever mediocre survival instinct might tell them otherwise.

As soon as the first three enter, Rick and Glenn descend on them. They fall quickly, too caught off-guard to fight back, but then the rest get smart and Daryl snarls, laughing himself into the thick of them. They're red-eyed and growling, baring their teeth at him. One of them opens his mouth to try and compel him with the Alpha Voice and Daryl goes for that one first, grabbing his head and wrenching it to one side so that he can sink his teeth into the man's neck and rip his throat out.

Glenn growls, pinned down by a bigger Alpha as the other man snaps at his neck, and Daryl lets out a low, angry noise at the sight of his packmate in danger. He grabs the Alpha by the nape of his neck and Glenn digs his claws into the man's chest, throwing him off, and Daryl wraps an arm around his throat and tightens it while Glenn bites at his arms and wrenches one arm out of his socket. The Alpha howls, clawing at Glenn but even as Glenn gets injured Daryl can see him healing.

He grits his teeth and tightens his arm and twists the man's head, snapping his neck easily. Then he grunts, falling to his hands and knees as another Alpha tackles him. The Alpha's hand goes to his nape and Daryl groans, abruptly going lax as the feels the man's hand tighten.

"Little bitch," the Alpha hisses, his other hand wrapping around Daryl's throat and squeezing tightly. Daryl gasps, unable to get air in, but he can't even raise his hands to claw at the Alpha and fight him off. He whimpers, pressed down on his stomach by the Alpha's weight, and his vision starts to grey out at the edges as the Alpha's hands clamp down viciously tightly around his neck.

Then he hears Rick roar in anger and the Alpha is thrown from him, hard enough that he collides with the far wall. Rick is on him in an instant, alight with anger that this man managed to touch Daryl – Daryl can feel his thoughts, his emotions now that Daryl isn't having to keep the bond sealed. Rick's anger crashes over him hard enough to hurt, no thought in him but to _kill_ , kill the son of a bitch who touched Daryl, rip him to fucking shreds.

 _Yes_ , Daryl whispers, goading his mate on, perversely pleased as he watches Rick dig his hands into the Alpha's chest and force his ribs apart with a snarl. The Alpha shrieks, blood welling up in his mouth and pooling around Rick's hands. Rick snaps his ribs like they're nothing, not reacting as the Alpha claws desperately at his neck and face.

"Stop playin' with your food," Daryl demands, and Rick immediately growls and sinks his teeth into the Alpha's throat, ripping his vocal cords out with a swift jerk of his head. Daryl's body is hot with desire, seeing his powerful Alpha fighting. If it were any other time he'd stay on his hands and knees and submit to Rick, he knows Rick wants to fuck him again, drunk on the blood and the scent of fear in the room.

But he can't. Alphas keep coming in, driven by Daryl's needy call. He growls when two of them come at him at one, and throws a punch that sends one down, clawing at the other until Glenn can come and take down the fallen one.

Soon there are no less than ten Alphas, piled up at the entrance to the room. No more come and Daryl snarls, glowing with victory and his mouth coated with blood. He goes still when he hears Rick growl, and turns his head to see his Alpha striding towards him, eyes glowing red, his skin and clothes soaked with blood.

Daryl whimpers, turning his head to one side when Rick fists a hand in his hair and bites his neck. He wants to fall to his knees immediately, let his Alpha take him over the pile of fallen challengers. But he can't – one of them has to be strong, and fight their instincts, even if it's killing Daryl to do it.

"Guys," Glenn says quietly, and Rick snarls, whirling around and baring his teeth at Glenn. Glenn's eyes go wide and he immediately ducks his head, whining softly in supplication when Rick stalks over to him and shoves him up against the wall.

Glenn, lost as he is to his own Alpha-fight, growls back, but ducks his head and shoves his forehead against Rick's chest like a newborn pup when Rick snarls at him. Daryl shivers. Rick's presence is powerful, filling up the entire room, his growl thick with Alpha Voice compelling obedience and submission.

"Rick," Daryl whispers, his voice thick with blood and saliva. Rick's gaze snaps to him and Daryl flinches, whining softly. "Rick. Alpha. There are more."

The only way to reach Rick now is to appeal to him as nothing but Omega, a frightened mate who needs his Alpha to fight off the other competitors for the right to knot and breed Daryl. Rick's eyes flash and he moves away from Glenn, deeming him too insignificant to be a threat. He nuzzles against Daryl's bitten neck and regards him with hooded red eyes.

"I'll kill 'em all, sweetheart," Rick growls, and Daryl smiles.

He nods towards the hallway. "Through there," he says.

Rick snarls and takes off, leading the way down the hallway. Glenn follows behind and Daryl takes up the rear. They break out into the main area beyond the door and Rick lets out a low roar, and Daryl feels the bond between them sliding back into place completely, allowing him to feel Rick's anger and desire to kill, and pull on his Alpha's power to lend command to his own voice.

"On your knees!" he shouts, watching as the Alphas gathered flinch. Combined with Rick's powerful snarl they're no match – most of them, anyway. A few of them are strong and snarl in threat but they're taken down by Rick and Glenn quickly.

Daryl spies Beth, crowded in a doorway, her eyes wide and face pale with fear. He walks over to her. "Where's Maggie?" he asks. She shakes her head. " _Tell me_."

"With – with the children," Beth says, her voice shaking. "Please don't hurt them."

"We won't," Daryl whispers. He leans in and rests his forehead against Beth's, doing his best to make his voice quiet and calm, Omega in the way that soothes women and other Omegas and puts them at ease. He can see goosebumps break out along her arms. "We're getting out of here. Where's Negan?"

"He went out," Beth says. "With Abraham and Simon."

Daryl nods. "Rick!" he calls, and Rick looks up from the body of a fallen Alpha to regard him. He turns back to Beth. "Take us there."

She nods, and turns and goes through the door. Rick and Glenn follow and Daryl winces as the air becomes thick with the scent of birth, milk, and the unmistakable scent of newborn pups. She leads them to an open area covered in thick blankets. There are women in tight black dresses just like hers – the only exception is Maggie. Daryl spots her immediately, curled up in a nest of blankets and clutching her baby to her chest.

Her eyes widen when she sees Glenn and she puts a hand to her mouth. "Oh my God, what the fuck have you _done_?" she demands, getting to her feet. "Negan will kill all of you."

"Love to see him try," Daryl bites out. He looks around. There are children here – two blonde-headed boys, a slim girl, and Maggie's baby. There are that many women plus Maggie and Beth. "We're getting out of here," Daryl announces, as Glenn goes over to Maggie, his hands shaking and a sweet purr stuck in his throat as he touches his mate and son. Maggie is crying, fear and worry making her scent saccharine and causing the newborn Alpha in her arms to give little whines of displeasure.

"Who are you?" the girl – Enid, Daryl remembers her name – demands. "You're not an Alpha. What are you?"

"That's an Omega," one of the women says. "Monsters, the lot of them."

Daryl growls at her, although he's sure with the way he looks right now it's not far from the truth. "We're leaving," he says. "Maggie, Beth, you're coming with me, Rick and Glenn. Anyone else who wants to come, can."

"You're not my Alpha," Enid says, her jaw set. "We can't just _leave_. Daddy will -."

"That man ain't your daddy," the woman says. She's a stern-looking black woman with a mass of dreadlocks on her head, held back with a black headscarf. She looks at Daryl appraisingly, then Rick, one eyebrow raised. "I know you. You're Rick."

The smaller blond boy whimpers, curling up in the blankets, his eyes wide with fear when he looks at Rick. "You killed my sire," he says, looking at Rick and flinching back when Rick regards him. "You killed him."

Rick's upper lip curls back and he looks at Daryl, before turning his face away.

"We can protect you," Daryl says. "But either way, we're leaving. Choose now."

Glenn has helped Maggie to her feet. She's walking unsteadily, still in pain from the natural labor, but follows them out as they turn and leave. Beth brings up the rear and Daryl is pleased to see the black woman following behind as well.

"What's your name?" he asks.

"Michonne," she replies.

"How much do you know?"

"Enough to know that anything out there is better than being in here," she says with a toss of her hair. "I've seen you fight. I believe you."

Daryl nods. When they go back out into the arena landing, the blood of the Alphas has coated the air.

"Wait!"

They stop and turn. The other women have joined them, the children in tow. Daryl's eyes narrow.

"We want to come with you," one of them says. She's pale and blonde and Daryl knows immediately that this is Jessie, the mother of the two boys. The wife of the man Rick killed. Daryl desperately wants to know – was this when Rick snapped, after Daryl escaped, or before? Rick had called himself a monster. He says he's hurt people and clearly has no problems doing it again when it comes to Daryl or when his eyes go red.

He wants to know, but they don't have time for that right now.

They run through the open area and there are stairs leading down to the ground level below. No Alphas come for them, too afraid or still compelled to obey Daryl and Rick's powerful Voices as they pass by. There are gates up ahead and they walk towards them, only to freeze when they hear a laugh.

Daryl snarls, lowly and under his breath, and turns to see Negan walking towards them. His bat rests loosely on his shoulder, and Daryl sees the truck idling behind him that they must have taken. He recognizes Abraham's shock of orange-red hair and Simon's beady eyes, even as his vision darkens into the heat vision and he can no longer see anything but shades of life inside of the three Alphas.

"Well, this is cute," Negan says, coming to a stop a little ways away. He nods at Rick. "You know, real Alphas don't steal others' harems and call it a pack."

Daryl snarls, both at Negan and the idea that Rick intends to take the rest of these people as mates. He steps forward, out from the rest of the group, only to go still when Simon raises a gun and aims it for him.

Negan's eyes watch him, calculating and cruel. "Aim for his stomach," Negan says, and Simon lowers the muzzle of his gun. Daryl flinches back. "If there is a pup in there – and at this point I'm not willin' to believe anythin' this little snake says – then maybe losin' it will finally break him."

Daryl's instincts shriek at him to fall back and protect his stomach, to fiercely defend the life that might be growing in there at this very moment. He doesn't know if he's pregnant, it's far too soon to tell, but if he _is,_ he'll die before losing his pup to another Alpha. And he might be able to heal, but if he were to be made infertile from being shot, he doesn't know what he would do. Maybe it's not just the death of an Alpha that makes Omegas break.

Rick snarls next to him, stepping forward as well. "You hurt him, you die," he says, and Negan laughs.

"Abraham," he says with a nod of his head, and Abraham, before anyone can react, lifts his gun and shoots, aiming for Rick's chest. Daryl feels the bullet hit as though he had been shot himself, piercing his lungs and his chest. Rick doesn't even flinch, immune to the pain because of Daryl's blood.

But it hurts – God, does it hurt. Daryl moans, clutching his stomach and falling to his knees. He coughs and blood comes out of his mouth. Negan crows with delight, clapping his hands together.

He takes a step forward and Rick snarls, matching him stride for stride. Daryl's pain is distracting him, though, Daryl can feel it. He moans weakly and tries to breathe through it – this isn't real pain, this isn't anything. He's not injured, he hasn't been shot, but he can't make his body believe that.

A hand touches his shoulder and he looks up to see Michonne standing over him. "Here," she whispers, and slides a small knife from a hidden sheath attached to her thigh behind him, dropping it behind his back. "Get the fuck up and do somethin' before Negan kills your Alpha."

Daryl whimpers, shaking his head. He tries to stand but can't, falling to his knees, and when he looks up he sees that it's because Negan hit Rick – one hard swing to his shoulder. Daryl howls, clutching his arm. He hears the Alphas above them and looks up to see them looking over the railing, watching the fight. There's one, a blond man with a burned face, his eyes are on one of the women from Negan's harem.

Daryl bites his lower lip and looks over at her as well. She's tall and thin, with bright eyes that have dark circles underneath them. She is looking up too, a sad smile on her face when she looks at the Alpha. Daryl can smell her, her scent warm with affection, and he looks back up at the Alpha.

The Alpha is looking at him now and Daryl swallows hard and tries to put as much Omega Voice as he can into his words; "Shoot," he says, and the man immediately grabs his gun and aims it downwards, throwing a rain of bullets down. Simon falls and Abraham takes a shot to the shoulder, cursing loudly. It's enough to distract Negan and so Daryl reaches back and grabs the knife and staggers to his feet.

He lunges for Negan and falls against him, in too much pain to bite or claw. Negan laughs and catches him, kicking at his knee until it snaps and Daryl howls, falling to one knee again. Negan grins, spinning the bat around in his hand before his grip tightens.

"I don't need your head, Daryl," he says, swinging the bat back and forth. "I just need your pussy. Hold still."

Daryl winces, hissing under his breath, and raises his hand to try and fight off the swing of the bat, but then Rick and Glenn both rush Negan, lunging for the Alpha, and Glenn catches the bat to his head and goes flying. Maggie screams but then Rick is on Negan, has him pinned to the ground. Daryl shoves himself over and puts the knife to Negan's throat.

_"Stop!"_

Daryl flinches, his hand abruptly going still. Negan's Alpha Voice is powerful, sliding down his spine, and he's too injured, in too much pain, to fight it off. Rick's bond with him isn't helping, it's the bond that's _causing_ him to be unable to think straight. He feels like he can't fucking see.

He growls, tightening his grip on the knife, and tries to press forward with it but he can't, he fucking _can't_. Negan looks at him with wide, red eyes, and snarls low in his chest. Daryl whimpers, flinching back, and Negan pushes himself upright. Rick is on his knees too, compelled to obey because of the powerful Alpha Voice – it's fucking _debilitating_ , it feels like Daryl's brain has been rolled to something flat and stretched out over a thousand miles, and every inch of it is red-hot and he aches, _God_ , does he ache.

He needs to appease his Alpha. Negan is angry with him – but Rick is his Alpha, Rick is angry too. God, he feels split into a thousand pieces, his head is burning and he aches so badly he thinks he might just die from the pain of it.

He screams, clutching his head. It feels like his first few moments of consciousness and if that had been his brain reawakening and remembering the bond with Rick, sealing it back together, then this is an all-out war in his head. Negan is fighting for dominance, his Voice is clawing at the bond he and Rick share and he's too fucking weak to fight it.

He looks up, tears in his eyes, and Negan smiles, shaking his head and tutting softly. "It didn't have to be like this, Daryl," he says. "If you'd have just kept your legs together and remembered who the real Alpha was, it would have been better for you."

"You're…" Daryl coughs, spitting out a wad of bloody saliva. "You're not my Alpha."

Rick whines next to him, holding his head in his hands. It looks like someone has him pinned there, like he's a limp puppet on cut strings. Daryl tightens his hand on his knife. He has to _fight it_.

_Rick, help me._

_I can't._

Daryl closes his eyes. He can feel Negan gearing up for another swing. One good hit and Daryl's head will be so fucked he'll likely go mindless, if Negan doesn't kill him outright just for the principle of the thing. He takes a deep breath and feels his head go abruptly blank.

Rick has pulled away from him, pulled his head out of Daryl's and it snaps like a tripwire. He can no longer feel Rick's pain, just his own from his knee and the fighting, but it's enough. He looks up and Negan starts his swing and then Daryl lunges for him and stabs him right in the neck.

Negan's eyes go wide and he chokes, falling to the ground. The bat falls from his limp hand and Daryl howls, falling over him and holding his head. He brings it up and then bashes it against the concrete. The air is silent except for the increasingly wet sound of him beating Negan's head against the ground, and then he pulls out his knife and stabs Negan in the neck, again and again, past the point to dead to the point of demolition. He wants Negan to be nothing more than a stain on the ground.

Rick grabs him and Daryl snarls, clawing at Rick's hands but Rick holds him and Daryl feels the bond go back into place and he's alight with it, stinking with pain, hardly able to stand. Rick's hand goes to his nape and Daryl submits with a soft whine, law and submissive in Rick's hold.

He hears someone groan and looks to see Glenn sitting upright, Maggie in tears by his side and wide-eyed when he stands, apparently uninjured. Already the gruesome wound from Negan's bat is healing over and Daryl exhales shakily, glad that his blood is doing its work.

Rick is healing too, Daryl can still feel the pain but Rick isn't bleeding anymore. He's pale and clammy with sweat, they both are, but there's no time to lose. They all have to get the fuck out of here.

His knee snaps back into place with a click and Daryl hisses, tentatively putting weight on it as his own healing abilities kick in. Rick is purring, his bloody hands running lines down Daryl's arms and Daryl whimpers and shakes his head, looking back up to their audience.

"We have to leave," he says. With Negan gone it won't be long before a power fight breaks out, the Alphas needing another man to take Negan's place and assert their dominance over the rest.

Rick nods, and then walks over to haul Glenn to his feet. He holds Glenn's head in his hands and rests their foreheads together, before he smiles. "You fought well," he says, and then gives Glenn over to Maggie and takes Daryl's hand. "Let's get the fuck outta here."


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus ends this story as well! I hope you guys liked/like it!

Even with the urgency and the sensitive situation, Rick can't stop Daryl from taking a piece of his kill from Negan's lifeless corpse. He takes Negan's hand, his right one where he'd held the bat so often, and cuts at it and bites it until the flesh and bones snap and he can free it from the rest of the body. He sinks his fangs into the meaty part of the thumb, eating as he, Rick, and the rest walk out of Negan's camp.

They pause when they hear footsteps rushing towards them and Daryl snarls lowly, but he's crowded in by Glenn and Rick and Maggie is leaning heavily on him now so he can't turn and lunge for any Alpha that might try and make them stay.

He turns and looks and it's the Alpha with the burned face, the one who had shot down and killed Simon at Daryl's command. Next to him is Abraham, bleeding heavily from the shoulder and red in the face from pain.

"Sherry," the Alpha says, coming to a stop when Rick turns his red eyes on him. Rick bares his teeth at the other man but doesn't attack. The woman he'd been looking at, the tall one with bright eyes, comes forward, her arms folded across her chest. "Don't go."

"What do you think will happen?" Sherry says. "We can't keep living like this. _I_ can't keep living like this, Dwight. After Tina…"

"It'll get better," Dwight says. He's holding his gun still, but loosely, the muzzle aimed to the ground. Daryl doesn't like that he has a weapon at all, and he and Rick are both still too buzzed from the blood-high to look at the other Alpha with anything other than aggression and hate. "I can get better."

"Not here," Sherry replies.

"Then come with me," Dwight says. "We'll go off on our own."

Sherry shakes her head. "I can't do that either."

Dwight growls, but it's a frustrated sound, not an aggressive one. "What're you gonna do? Just follow Rick now? He's no better than Negan – you know what he's done." Daryl bristles at the comparison, his mate is _not_ Negan and never will be, but they know more about Rick than he does. They know better than him how much or how little to fear and trust Rick. Daryl trusts and loves him unconditionally, but he also knows he's capable of tearing Rick apart if he set his mind to it. With his blood in Rick's veins now the Alpha has become a force to be reckoned with.

"Then let me come with you," Dwight finally says. "Both of us. You'll need Alphas to survive and protect you." His eyes are on Rick and Glenn now. "More than just two."

Rick cocks his head to one side as though considering. Daryl feels his consciousness press against Daryl's and opens himself up to hear his mate's thoughts;

 _We can protect these people,_ Rick says. _You, me and Glenn. We're strong enough._

 _But there's only three of us,_ Daryl replies. _We're outnumbered. And when I'm too pregnant to keep going…_

Rick growls, a fissure of arousal at the mention of Daryl being bred flooding through their bond. Daryl shivers and whines, ducking his head even though Rick isn't looking at him.

_Is there a way to guarantee his loyalty?_

_Not any that I like._

_Tell me._

Rick takes a breath and lifts his chin as though in challenge. "I'm not like Negan," he says, looking between Dwight and Sherry. "I'm not going to force anyone to come with me, but if you do, you _will_ understand that I'm the Alpha now. I demand nothing less than your complete loyalty."

"As long as you keep her safe, you have it," Dwight replies without hesitation.

Rick nods, pressing his lips together.

_Daryl._

_Yes?_

_If you give them your blood, that'll be enough for me._

Daryl frowns, lifting his head to try and look Rick in the eye but Rick refuses to take his gaze away from Dwight and Abraham. _What will that do?_

_It'll work like an imprint. Not quite a bond, but they'll feel compelled to be loyal and protect you because of the imprinting. It's the only thing I can think of that would satisfy me._

Daryl licks his lips and nods, pushing his affection and love against Rick's chest. _Do what you feel needs to be done._

Rick nods and straightens up again. "Your word isn't good enough," he says.

Dwight lets out another frustrated sound, but it's Abraham who speaks; "What'dya want from us?" he demands, stepping forward. "Want me to kneel? Bare my neck? What do you _want_?"

Rick smiles. "I want you to imprint on Daryl."

Silence meets his words, Daryl can feel the shocked looks on the rest of the group going between him and Rick. He senses that this is a bigger deal than Rick is letting on. Dwight blinks at him, his eyes flashing to Daryl, and then back.

"…Why?" he asks.

"You're right, with just me and Glenn and Daryl here we're not enough to defend such a big group if somethin' real bad happens. But Negan's way didn't work. He bought us – he bought me, just as he bought all of you. He was a snake, and a liar, but we followed him because he demanded it of us. I'm not going to demand anything. I'm not going to take your women, or your children from you. I'm not going to force you into wars and fights just because I want you to. _But_ , I need to know that you are loyal, I need to know that whatever happens, your interests remain with the good of the group. So, I want you to imprint on Daryl. I want you to take his blood. It'll give you strength and healing, and it will satisfy me."

Dwight and Abraham remain silent, where they are, their eyes dark as they consider. Daryl nods to Abraham. "A mouthful of my blood and it'll be like that never existed," he says, gesturing to the bullet in his shoulder.

Abraham raises an eyebrow but before he can ask Glenn steps forward with a nod. "It's true," he says. "You all saw it. Negan fuckin' brained me, but here I am. Daryl can… _heal_ things. Rick got shot and didn't even flinch. No one will be capable of makin' us do anythin' anymore."

"Except Rick," Dwight finishes.

"I trust Rick," Glenn says. "He gave me my son back. He gave me Maggie. He's giving us all a chance to have a pack – not just a community, but a family. I would trust him and Daryl with anything."

Dwight looks at Sherry. "And you're okay with this?" he asks.

Sherry presses her lips together and looks back at Daryl for a long, long moment. She bites the side of her lower lip and shifts her weight, her arms still folded across her chest as a defense. Daryl meets her gaze steadily. Glenn has taken Maggie from him and so Daryl stands tall, exposed to the rest of the group's stares.

Finally, she nods. "Imprinting is a small price to pay," she says. Daryl sighs, relieved. He doesn't imagine women can fully understand the complex social bonds and needs of Alphas and Omegas – he barely understands them himself, but he knows instinct. He had promised Rick a pack, a band of strong and loyal children and he can give Rick that but Rick needs other adults, Alphas and women who are loyal to him as well. His instincts and his breed demand nothing less.

Daryl wipes a hand across his mouth, still tacky with Negan's blood, and steps forward so that he's by Rick's side. "Whatever you decide, do it now," Daryl says. "Before the fights break out."

Dwight nods, looking over his shoulder, and then he steps forward. Daryl brings his wrist to his mouth and sinks his teeth into the soft skin there, ripping it up and shedding his blood. He holds his arm out to Dwight who releases his gun so that it's just hanging by the strap, and he takes it in both hands. It's a strong grip and Daryl fights down a growl when Dwight touches him and his lips first touch Daryl's skin.

He takes a deep mouthful of Daryl's blood, licking over the bite mark as it starts to close to get as much of it as he can. His eyes flash red and he swallows and Daryl lets out a quiet purr of encouragement, wringing his arm free as Dwight gasps and stumbles. He doesn't know what it feels like, to imprint on someone as an adult. Glenn had seemed to take it reasonably well.

Rick smiles and reaches for Dwight, pulling him close by his hair and resting their foreheads together as he watches Dwight's eyes. He cups Dwight's face in both hands and they remain like that for a long while, before Rick nods, apparently satisfied, and lets Dwight go. Dwight moves to stand by Sherry.

Daryl looks at Abraham. "And you?" he asks.

Abraham sighs and lets out a soft curse, before he nods. Daryl smiles and bites himself again, holding his arm out once more and Abraham takes a drink from it. Rick does the same thing, watching Abraham closely – Daryl can feel him, like he's looking for something specific. A flash in the red or some spark there that must be Daryl's life and influence tainting the Alphas' blood and turning them loyal to him.

Rick nods and lets Abraham go. "Welcome," he says with a smile, before he turns to regard Daryl. He holds out his hand and Daryl immediately puts his cheek in Rick's palm, letting Rick pull him close. Rick nuzzles at his mouth, licking Negan's blood from his lips. Rick's purr is loud and supremely satisfied. Daryl can feel his arousal and his pride pulsing through their bond. He wants to get on his hands and knees again – he has given Rick a tremendous gift of two loyal Alphas and demands reciprocation in the form of a child. He needs Rick to give everything he has to Daryl.

But now is not the time. Rick kisses him once more and then they part and Daryl sighs, closing his eyes. "Let's go," he says. "There's an old outpost a few miles away. We'll sleep there tonight."

 

 

They find the outpost – it's a plain, single-room building made of concrete in the middle of a field, the land open and exposed on all sides except one where trees are growing. Even then the little copse is small and thin and Daryl doesn't fear an ambush.

They light a fire and Daryl smiles when he sees Maggie pull down one of the sleeves of her shirt to expose one of her breasts so that she can feed her son. Glenn's Alpha scent is soothing and proud, overjoyed at being with his mate and son and watching her feed him. Dwight and Sherry curl up together on the other side of the fire. The boys are with their mother, Enid and Michonne taking up another side next to Abraham. The rest of the women make up the remainder of the ring.

"Where are we going to go?" Michonne asks when the fire is crackling happily and their bellies are full from the deer Abraham managed to take down. His strength had returned once Daryl's blood had healed his wound and he had hunted down the thing with his bare hands. Daryl is pleased that they have such a strong Alpha in their midst – were he unbonded he has no doubt that his body would find a suitable mate in the Alpha simply for his strength alone.

Of course, that doesn't matter now. Rick is his master and his love and his body burns for the Alpha, hotter than the fire could hope to. He looks over at Rick and purrs quietly, drawing his Alpha's attention. Rick's eyes flash red.

"Where will we go?" Daryl asks when it seems like Rick won't answer.

Rick's eyes rake down him like a physical thing, his fingers twisting against his thighs as though he's fighting the urge to reach for Daryl and pull him closer. Not like they could get any closer – Daryl is plastered to his mate's side from shoulder to knee, Rick's warmth and scent soothing him completely.

Rick looks away, a Herculean effort on his part that Daryl feels himself, and heaves a breath. "For now, nowhere," he says. "We'll keep moving West, where I'm from. I know there are other communities we might be able to join. But honestly I'm not holding out much hope for that." He sighs and shakes his head and Daryl sees a flash of Carl pass between them – the boy is much younger than Rick says he is now, his eyes the same bright blue as his father, his face in shadow from a big brown hat sitting on his young head. Daryl tilts his head and rests his cheek against Rick's shoulder and Rick bends one arm so that he can idly play with Daryl's long hair. "My goal is to find a good place to settle for now. If we meet other Alphas and everyone agrees on their character, they can join us just as Dwight and Abraham did. Women may join. Children may join."

Glenn nods. "We'll be okay," he says, smiling widely when Rick looks at him. He has an arm around Maggie's shoulders, his other hand helping her hold their son up as he suckles noisily at her breast.

Daryl swallows, longing hitting him hard behind the eyes. He puts a hand to his own stomach and bites his lower lip when Rick turns to look at him. He stands and Rick raises his eyes, the irises there glowing dully red in the light of the fire.

"Alpha," Daryl whispers, and then he turns and walks out of the outpost. The night air is soothing and cool against his skin and Daryl sighs, turning and walking towards the trees when he hears the door open and close behind him.

He feels Rick follow, and the air gets thick with anticipation. Daryl stops and looks over his shoulder to see that Rick has stopped too, his chest heaving with the cool air and his fingers flexing by his sides. He looks like he wants to lunge for Daryl, tackle him to the ground and mount him here in the open. Daryl takes another step forward and Rick matches him, keeping the distance between them the same.

Daryl smiles. "Are you going to chase me, Alpha?"

"Only if you run."

Daryl's smile widens, because Rick has to know that that's exactly what he intends to do. He turns around again so that he's facing Rick fully, and then he pulls his shirt over his head and tosses it to the ground. Rick's eyes watch him like Daryl is the most intricately beautiful thing he's ever seen. Rick growls when Daryl pushes his sweatpants down as well, leaving him bare and shining in the light of the half-moon.

Daryl walks over to him, soundless in the grass, and takes Rick's face in both hands. He pulls Rick down for a kiss and Rick growls, his hands landing on Daryl's hips and squeezing tightly enough that there will likely be bruises. The feeling of Rick's clothing, rough and bloodstained, against his skin is decadent.

Daryl pulls away and clears his throat, feeling his voice get thick with command; "On your knees," he demands, and Rick's eyes widen and he drops to them immediately, lips parted as he gasps and gazes up at Daryl.

Daryl smiles, his hands in Rick's hair, and closes his eyes when Rick purrs and leans in to nuzzle against his stomach, pressing a warm, open-mouthed kiss there. His fingers tighten in Rick's hair because he feels Rick's desire like it's his own, desperate to press Daryl down on the grass and mount him and cause his stomach to swell with his child.

Daryl wants to give that to him. He wants to share his blood with their whole pack, have them imprint on him, knowing that his loyalty with always be to Rick and whoever he commands, Rick is the Lord and Alpha of them because he is Daryl's Alpha and Daryl is obedient to him. Daryl lets go of Rick's hair and leans down to kiss his open mouth, soaking in the scent of his Alpha's arousal and victor-scent.

Rick had been lost the blood-high before, throbbing with desire and aggression and Daryl had wanted so badly to submit to his Alpha, to prove that even at Rick's worst he is a loyal and loving mate. His affection is free for Rick, Daryl himself feels cleaved open and bare for the Alpha's touch and kisses.

He takes a deep breath when he feels his body start to tremble and grow hot, slick leaking out of him and staining his thighs. "Count to ten," he commands, and lets Rick's head go. Rick snarls, the sound thick with command even though it's not the Alpha Voice and doesn't compel Daryl to stay. Rick is going to let him run, he's going to let Daryl _leave_ because he knows Daryl so desperately wants to stay.

Daryl smiles and kisses him again as Rick starts to count. "One." One kiss, and then Daryl turns and flees towards the small copse of trees. As Rick's voice fades out of hearing shot, he can feel the anticipation through their bond as though Rick is branding the numbers against his skin.

_Six._

_Seven._

_You better run faster than that, sweetheart._

Rick is on his feet, Daryl knows he is, pacing back and forth along some imaginary line as he finishes his count. As soon as he reaches ten, Daryl is in the trees, and he shakes when he hears Rick give a howl that shatters the quiet of the night, slicing through Daryl's abdomen and up through his heart. He almost falls to his knees right then, breathing heavily from the sprint and from his Alpha's desire.

He whimpers, hearing as Rick starts to give chase, and darts through the trees as quickly as he can. Sticks and rocks scrape against his feet and cause him to stumble but he forces himself onwards, high on the visceral thrill of being chased, knowing that as soon as Rick catches him he's going to be mounted and bred as his body is so desperate to do.

He hears Rick snarl and his body burns with adrenaline and he darts away just as Rick barrels past him. He slows to a stop, breathing heavily, as Rick skids to a halt and turns to snarl at him. Rick's eyes are completely red, his fangs gleam in the low light. He's shed his clothes as well and Daryl licks his lip, mouth going dry as he sees his Alpha straighten up, strong and fine despite how thin he is. Daryl whimpers again, able to feel how badly Rick needs him and wants him and so pleased by how badly it's affecting him.

It feels like a game, like they're meeting each other for the first time in the wild times where their kind was little more than dust and bone and they sought each other out like beacons in the night, desperate to find a mate to breed with and watch over each other's backs while they slept. He aches for Rick, deeper than just desire, like he's under some extreme distress and only Rick will be able to soothe him.

It feels almost like fear, drunk as he is on the victory of his kills that day and the way Rick is looking at him. Rick steps forward, snarling lowly, and Daryl whines – this sweet and frightened thing. He likes the way Rick's nostrils flare and his scent gets thick with the desire to dominate and claim this lost, wandering Omega in the woods.

It feels new and Daryl likes it – he likes this game. He likes playing innocent and sweet and afraid, knowing that Rick will claim him and purr for him and give him what he so desperately needs. Rick takes another step forward and Daryl flinches, tilting his head to one side as Rick reaches out and shushes him, putting his lips to Daryl's exposed throat.

Rick knows that Daryl is playing, but reacts the same way nevertheless. "Shh, pretty little thing," he rumbles quietly, his voice low and growled against Daryl's sweaty neck. One of Rick's hands drops down and his fingertips gently brush Daryl's stomach, then down to his cock, and he wraps a hand around it loosely and strokes, once. The touch is so casual and sudden that Daryl gasps, his hands against Rick's chest like he intends to push him away.

Rick takes a deep inhale, growling loudly, and Daryl flinches again. "Please," he gasps, arching into Rick's hand as though unable to stop himself. It pulls his back away from the tree and Rick is quick to press the advantage, wrapping his free arm around Daryl's waist and running his fingers through the slick coating Daryl's rim.

Daryl trembles, both from this play-game of fear and the very real arousal and need that he's sure his mate can feel. Rick snarls, opening his mouth and putting his teeth to Daryl's neck and Daryl goes still, whining softly.

"Shouldn't be out here all alone," Rick says, going along with a game for now. "Bad men could find you."

Daryl shivers, and thinks of what he _or_ Rick might be able to do to those 'bad men'. Rick licks over his throat and lifts his head to growl in Daryl's ear. "They'd do all sorts of bad things to you, sweetheart. It's a good thing I found you first."

 _God_. Daryl's stomach tenses as Rick continues to stroke him, pleasure lighting up his skin and making his eyes itch and glow gold. He whines again, baring his teeth as Rick tilts his head and nips at his exposed neck, just as one of Rick's fingers turns and slides against his rim, pushing inside of his body in one smooth motion.

Daryl gasps, the sound lost to a moan as Rick's finger sinks into him and Rick's hand tightens on the head of his cock. The hands he has against Rick's chest turn needy, sliding up his shoulders and pulling the Alpha closer and Rick smells so fucking good, Earthy and bloody and alive. Daryl _needs_ him.

Rick laughs, this low and rough thing that sends a shiver down Daryl's spine. "Don't worry," he says, purring the words. "I'll protect you. Just gotta do one thing for me, sweetheart."

"W-what's that?" Daryl asks, clinging to the charade with just his nails as he opens his eyes and looks into Rick's.

Rick smiles and lets go of Daryl's cock and pulls his finger out. Daryl whines, resisting the urge to snap at Rick and demand the return of his touches. That's not the game they're playing. He's shaking when Rick steps away from him, cold air rushing against his skin and making him shiver.

"Get on your hands and knees for me, sweetheart," Rick commands gently, touching Daryl's cheek in a soothing pet before he steps back. Daryl licks his lips and whimpers, before he obeys, sinking to his knees first, and then bending down until his hands touch the soft grass beneath them. "That's it. That's beautiful. A little lower." Rick's hand presses against his shoulders and Daryl whimpers, dropping to his elbows. "Lower," Rick commands, and his hand goes to Daryl's nape and squeezes, _oh so gently_ , but it's enough to get Daryl to collapse into a perfect mountain position, arms stretched above his head, his knees spread out on the grass to he's low to the ground. If Rick knelt behind him, he'd be able to cover and mount Daryl with ease.

Daryl looks up as Rick growls in pleasure and circles him, his eyes raking over Daryl like nails. "Are you – are you going to mount me, Alpha?" he asks roughly, his fingers curling.

"Is that what you want?" Rick asks, as though Daryl would deny him now. No, if Daryl has any problems with this game, with this result, he would have voiced them or dropped the charade much sooner. As it is now he's tense and trembling. He feels raw, exposed on some level he can't name – not the physical vulnerability, or even how much he knows Rick can feel he needs this – but deeper still than that. Like he can be anything and do anything and Rick will love and treasure him regardless.

Daryl licks his lips and nods. "I might get pregnant," he says, like it's a warning. Rick's desire hits him with a hard pulse and he bows his head, hiding a smile as Rick kneels behind him, his hands landing on Daryl's ass and spreading him out for Rick's greedy gaze.

"That's not a 'No'," Rick says.

Daryl whines, bowing his back so that he can lift his ass higher in the air. He knows his slick is shining on his skin, he can feel it leaking out of him like blood from a bite. It's his life, the ultimate prize of his fertility and his breed that he's giving Rick right now, and he wants, _needs_ , Rick to take it.

Rick purrs, leaning down and kissing at Daryl's nape, one hand sliding down to cup Daryl's flat stomach. "Getting you pregnant would make me very happy," he says, his voice low and rumbling and Daryl gasps, thighs trembling from holding Rick's weight and with how hard the desire hits him. "Would you like to make me happy, sweetheart? I'll protect you from all those bad men if you do."

Daryl whimpers and nods. "I wanna make you happy," he says, and at the same time thinks _Rick, please, mount me. I need it, I need -._

His brain stutters to a halt when Rick snarls and opens his mouth wide on the back of Daryl's neck and he sinks his teeth there, at the same time grabbing Daryl's hip with his free hand and holding him still as he ruts back and then shoves his cock against Daryl's hole. Daryl opens up easily to him as though he's been taking Rick all his life, and even the pain of the sudden stretch doesn't even register when he feels Rick's roar of victory and claim as he penetrates Daryl.

He doesn't go slow – the sweet, seductive quality to him is gone. He's gotten the Omega now, pinned him down and managed to get him bare and slick and he's taking it, taking the prized gift of Daryl's body. He fucks in brutally, the sounds of their skin and bones crashing together filling the otherwise silent glade.

He's drinking more of Daryl's blood, Daryl can feel his teeth stay locked in Daryl's flesh, tongue working along the sore entry wounds to coax more out so that he can drink his fill. It burns Rick's chest, he can feel it working through his Alpha, sending him careening through a high more powerful than any drug. Daryl moans, trembling as Rick's cockhead finds his prostate and fucks against it brutally, the sensitive, hard spot inside of him that Rick had touched before aching with the heat of his desire. He knows as soon as he feels Rick come inside of him that the ache will disappear.

Rick slams his palms down on the ground on either side of Daryl's chest and Daryl pulls his arms back, wrapping his fingers through Rick's and around his wrists to keep him steady and cement the physical connection between them. Rick's purr is loud and goes on uninterrupted.

He pulls away from the bite and Daryl moans, arching his body up to rub more fully against Rick's, hips chasing the Alpha as Rick pulls back and meeting him for every harsh thrust. "Fuck, Rick, _please_ ," he growls, dropping the façade now as Rick continues to fuck him. "I want…"

_I need it._

Rick snarls, slowing down abruptly, his body trembling behind Daryl. "You want me to breed you, Daryl?" he asks.

 _Yes_.

"God, Rick, _please_ , yes," Daryl growls, letting go of Rick's hands to expose the bloody back of his neck, pulling his hair away from the spot of Rick's bite. Rick snarls, leaning down to lick over the mess there. He's not sure he can put into words how satisfied he feels, knowing Rick needs him so badly. He thinks that until he has a baby of his own he'd be happy to feed Rick his blood, let his Alpha suckle at his neck and arms until he's just as strong as Daryl is.

"I want to," Rick growls, holding Daryl's hips tightly and keeping him still as he slides his cock all the way in, grunting when he's fully sheathed. He pulls back and does it again – slow, dragging things that fill Daryl's lungs like he's drowning. "It's comin'. Hold still."

Daryl sighs, relaxing as Rick fucks in and Daryl feels the bump of his knot forming as it fucks past his rim, and then Rick stays there, working Daryl's hips in little rocking motions to tease and swell his knot. Each little jostle and jolt makes him rut against Daryl's prostate and Daryl is trembling and sweat beneath his Alpha's heat.

"That's it," Rick snarls, baring his teeth, and then he lets out a low roar as he starts to come, flooding Daryl's insides with his seed. He collapses back over his mate and wraps a hand around Daryl's cock, stroking quickly. All it takes is a moment before Daryl is coming, staining the ground between his knees. He bows his head and moans, flinching against Rick, his sensitive body aching and satisfied as he feels himself grow heavy and warm with Rick's come.

Rick kisses his nape, licking through the blood there, and then nuzzles the back of his head until Daryl sighs. He lets Daryl's cock go and plants his hand against the ground again so that Daryl isn't taking all of his weight anymore, and lets out a quiet purr.

Daryl turns his head, nuzzling against Rick's lips, and smiles. "As many as I can," he promises, and Rick's fingers clench and he growls, dumping another load of come inside of Daryl. Daryl's eyes flutter closed and he lets out a quiet moan. "My blood and my children and my body, all of it is yours."

Rick lets out a happy, victorious growl. "I love you so much," he whispers, kissing Daryl's red cheek. "I love you. I'll be a worthy mate, a good Alpha." And Daryl doesn't know if he feels it needs to be said, or he feels compelled to say it anyway. Rick's hand goes back to his stomach, gently rubbing his thumb just shy of Daryl's belly button. "I'm going to make you proud to be mine."

Daryl smiles and turns his head a little more so that he can kiss Rick properly. "You already have."

 

 

 

 

**Six months later;**

Daryl sits, wincing as he sits down at the side of a slow-moving creek. The scent of water had drawn him here. Behind him, hidden in the trees, the pack sleeps. They have two more Alphas now, and another woman and child. The first Alpha had agreed to imprint on Daryl immediately – he's a happy, smiling man named Bob. The second Alpha had had the woman and child, and refused. Rick had no choice but to kill him. Daryl had stripped the meat from his bones over the next few days and fed it to his wife and daughter.

"Thank you," the wife had said. Her name is Carol, and she'd been wearing a collar of bruises and bites on her neck and down her arms when they'd first met. "I didn't have the strength to do it myself." She and her daughter are safe with Daryl and Rick and their pack.

He gazes into the water, one hand absently petting over his swelling stomach. He's almost to the point where his body is starting to protest sleeping on the ground and walking all the time. He doesn't mind moving, and will keep doing so until Rick commands he stop, but the cool water is soothing on his muscles as he cups his hands and pours it over his legs and his shoulders, and then raises a handful to his mouth and takes a sip.

His head snaps up as he hears movement from the other side of the creek. His eyes narrow and he reaches to his side for his knife. _Rick_ , he whispers, and feels the Alpha stirring. Glenn is, too, attuned to Daryl's distress call since he's been imprinted the longest. Dwight and Abraham and Bob won't be too far behind. It's not as cemented as feeling emotions – Glenn cannot, thankfully, feel it whenever Daryl and Rick mate – but his distress call is meant to call the Alphas in his pack to his aid, to protect him, and he's pleased when he feels Rick wake up, Glenn close behind.

There's more rustling on the other side of the creek and, while Daryl is sure it's just an animal and he can't smell anything specifically threatening, he's in no condition to fight as well as he used to and he's more vulnerable to an attack than he's ever been. His body is carrying his Alpha's child now and he'll die to defend it, but to defend it now he must act more like a prey animal than ever and allow his strong, powerful Alphas to fight for him.

The trees rustle and part and Daryl goes tense as he sees two people stepping out into the open area. A man – Alpha, tall and broad and strong-looking, and a younger Alpha. A teenager, if Daryl had to guess. No older than seventeen.

The pair of them stop when they see Daryl, eyes widening, and Daryl lets out a low growl. He doesn't move, unwilling to throw himself off balance or expose how uncoordinated and weak he is. The wind changes, bringing their scents towards him, and he stops snarling.

One of them smells…familiar.

Not the same, definitely not, and muted under the scents of the other one, and of the forest, and everything else. But there's something definitely familiar in that pair. They don't move, caught staring, and then Daryl hears the trees part behind him and turns to see Rick and Glenn striding out of the trees.

"Rick," Daryl warns, and nods towards the pair. They don't have any weapons that Daryl can see but that's never stopped Alphas before.

Rick freezes, his eyes wide, mouth open in shock. "I… _Carl_?" he asks. The teenager raises his head, eyes wide, and Daryl understands exactly what he had been smelling – Rick, his scent ingrained into the scent of his son. " _Shane_?"

"…Rick?" the man – Shane – asks, taking a step forward. He rubs a hand over his mouth and shakes his head in wide-eyed disbelief. "Are you fucking kidding me – is that really you, man?"

Rick laughs – this breathless, happy thing, and then he's moving past Daryl and into the creek, shoes splashing through the water, and Shane runs to the bank and both Alphas throw themselves into a tight hug. The force of the impact carries across to Daryl and he gasps, flooded with his mate's happiness and joy at seeing his son – and, apparently, his friends. Rick's affection for the Alpha is strong and Daryl gets the impression that they were brothers or packmates at some point, far back in history.

After a moment they part and Rick turns towards the younger Alpha, Carl. Carl's eyes – the same eyes as his father – are bright with tears and he runs forward, throwing himself into Rick's arms and Rick catches him and holds him tightly, almost falling to his knees as Carl starts to cry.

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again," Carl says.

"Are you two alone?" Rick asks when they pull away, looking at Shane.

Shane nods. "Few months back, this wild group comes in and they just…they fuckin' slaughtered everyone. Followed some psycho named Negan or some shit. I got Carl out. I…" Shane took a breath, shaking his head, his eyes flashing red. "I promised I'd look out for him. I thought you were dead."

"Thank you," Rick says, and pulls Shane into another tight hug by the back of his head. "But you don't need to worry about that anymore. Negan's dead."

Shane pulls back, eyes wide. "I…you know who that is?"

"That's where I was," Rick says with a nod. "He caught me not long after I left. You're right. He was fuckin' crazy. But he's dead."

"How?" Shane asks.

Rick bites his lower lip, and then turns to look at Daryl. Glenn is by his side, shifting his weight nervously. "Daryl," he calls, holding out a hand, and Daryl shoves himself to his feet, letting Glenn help him stay steady until he finds his footing with the new weight on his stomach.

Shane's eyes widen. "Is that…is that a fucking Omega?" he whispers.

Rick nods. "This is Daryl," Rick says, and Daryl walks up to his side and lets Rick's hand brush across his face and into his hair. "My mate. He's the one who got us out, who freed us all. He killed Negan. I…owe him my life. I owe him everything."

Daryl smiles, blushing under the affection and love he can hear in Rick's voice. He ducks his head and hesitantly meets Shane's and Carl's eyes. Carl's gaze falls to his stomach and he swallows hard. "Is…?" He reaches out, hesitating halfway. "Can I?"

Daryl nods, purring softly when Carl's hand settles across his stomach. "Guess this'll be your brother or sister," he says, and Carl swallows harshly. He looks happy enough to cry all over again.

"Please tell me you'll stay," Rick says. "I have a pack now, Shane. We can rule it together, just like before."

Shane's eyes are wide, but he doesn't look angry or anything else negative. When Daryl takes a breath, all he can smell is the scents of happy, relieved Alphas. It smells like hope, the same kind of thing that rain on grass feels and the way hot air smells of sunlight.

Rick reaches out and without hesitation Shane grabs his forearm, both Alphas holding each other tightly just beneath the elbow. It feels like a pact stronger than blood or bonding. Rick's giddy joy makes Daryl feel alight from the inside.

"Please stay," Rick asks again, voice weak and soft.

Shane smiles. "I promised if we ever found each other again, that'd be the last time we're apart," he says, and Rick nods. A flash of memory passes behind Daryl's eyes, something quiet in the dark with Rick, one foot out the door, his heart heavy. Daryl doesn't know why he left his pack before, but there must have been a reason. And if he hadn't, they would have never met. Daryl shudders to think what might have happened to him if Rick had never found him.

"So you'll stay?" Rick asks, grinning widely.

Shane nods, and Carl nods as well, letting his hand drop from Daryl's stomach, tears of joy and hope in his eyes. Daryl purrs and holds out his arms for the young Alpha, pulling him into a gentle hug and breathing his scent in deeply, pleased that Rick is still there under it all. This child isn't his by blood but Carl is his by love and bond and that's good enough for him. He senses Rick won't enforce an imprint on either of them, will only offer Daryl's blood for its power, but the trust and love he feels between the two Alphas settles and soothes him.

Shane smiles, letting go of Rick's hand. "Yeah, brother," he says, and smiles again at Daryl and Carl as Daryl lets Carl go. He puts a hand on Carl's shoulder and squeezes tightly. "We'll stay."


End file.
